NZer Gareth Morgan has come out in praise of life in North Korea, having toured parts of it on motorcycle by special permission of the DPRK. Morgan appears to see himself as some kind of private diplomat, trying to bridge mutual misunderstandings between Koreans & is using the media to get attention to his message.
To praise a country where the citizens are not allowed to leave, where the state controls all media & information flows, where children languish in gulags for the political crimes of family members, where many many have died due to state-induced famine while resources are directed to the military, is at best very naive.
NZer LibertyScott - a longtime commentator on NK matters, with an extensive knowledge of the history & workings of the DPRK - has called Morgan's praise 'utterly reprehensible', to Morgan's face on Morgan's blog. LibertyScott is right. NK is a slave-state, run for the sake of its ruling elite. Whatever Morgan's intent, his actions as a western outsider have raised only the credibility of that regime & would please them enormously as a PR triumph, helping maintain their hold on power & continue their existence. Needless to say this is not how Morgan sees it. His reply to LibertyScott is instructive - in the main an ad hominem attack, credentials-questioning and threatening of libel action. Astonishing.
More here: http://libertyscott.blogspot.c...