LiNK Coverage Roundup

An unnamed LiNK correspondent from Seoul sent me some, umm, links to press coverage of the human rights symposium. I will put these into the blender with other comments I’ve received.

The Joongang Ilbo gave the meeting generally favorable coverage; the South Korean students, however, seem disinterested by all accounts, even LiNK’s. I also smirked a little at this quote from Park Il-Hwan, one of the good guys: “Students in Korea look at the North Korean situation differently from Korean students who grew up abroad.” Heh? Funny, I always considered them Americans who happen to be of Korean descent, not that many Koreans are likely to claim that kind of suzerainty over my little Hebrew-Altaics, but then again, I’m still waiting for my piece of the action in that whole global banking scheme thingy. I know–how damn sensitive of me.

The Korea Times‘s story grated on me for its emphasis on how non-partisan this issue is supposed to be, to the exclusion of actually remembering what the issue is. Fine, dandy, and okely-dokely, but if I did an MRI on Adrian Hong’s brain, I’m guessing that (1) that wasn’t the main point of the symposium (at least judging by its title), and (2) the “non-political” label is mostly a necessary disclaimer. Fact is, the emphasis on North Korean human rights does vary greatly by party, and I’m not personally ready to stay my poison pen from stabbing a prison tattoo into the sorry hides of those who never lifted a gavel to help us to, say, pass the NKHRA. In America, the support for the issue is bipartisan but far more uniformly enthusiastic among Republicans. There are 2 1/2 major political parties in Korea: the reinvented center-right Grand National Party mentions the issue when it’s expedient; the ruling leftist Uri Party does its best to bury the issue completely; and the Democratic Labor Party is probably gagging and dragging defectors back to Pyongyang itself for self-criticism and rehabilitative labor. Keeping the issue overtly non-partisan is a smart tactic and the just what I’d expect from a mensch like Adrian Hong, but it’s a pretty leaky journalistic vessel for pouring in the contents of (nearly) the whole seminar.

Contrast that with Andrew Petty’s piece in The Korea Herald, which I’ve already noted below. Andrew’s article mentions the partisanship issue, too, but starts by putting the emphasis on the main issue, gives a voice to both sides, lets the actors speak for themselves, and lets the protagonist go first:

Word of the U.S. North Korean Human Rights Act has spread quickly among defectors in China, Russia and other countries, as well as to citizens in the communist state, a non-government organization says. Tim Peters, founder of Helping Hands Korea who has spoken with people in China recently, said news of the bill may encourage North Koreans to defect or refugees to seek asylum when previously they would have been “less inclined to do so.” He also sees the bill causing divisions among North Koreans not loyal to the communist party. That’s good news to Peters, but disconcerting for others with a common goal to improve human rights in North Korea who prefer the South Korean government tend to the North’s needs first, or that the United States not involve itself at all.

Finally, for those who read Korean, here’s the Chosun Ilbo’s take. If the babies sleep, my wife and I will try to pick through it. There was also this interesting bit, courtesy of LiNK–

[T]he conference was co-sponsored by LiNK and Korean Youth United (KYU). KYU is a new group of college students studying in South Korea, about half South Korean, half North Korean defectors, and a few ethnic Korean Chinese exchange students.

There are some small but active groups of South Koreans, such as NK Net and NK Gulag, which seem very well run by young and dedicated people, but they’re obviously much smaller than their lefty counterparts. Let’s hope this represents either new membership or new organization.

Reader and correspondent Brendan, who has been to North Korea and now works with defectors in Seoul, seemed pessimistic. He noted that the academic types tried to subject Adrian Hong to the “root-out-class-enemies!” treatment; the general reaction seemed a blend of apathy and hostility. On his way home, he saw the familiar green and white riot police buses (the Koreans call them ttakjangs, or chicken cages, but the cops don’t appreciate that term themselves–just ask them!) forming up in front of the U.S. Embassy, a sign of where South Korea’s real passions lay: Fallujah.

When it comes to the South Koreans, LiNK has its work cut out for it, but I doubt they expected to overthrow the Hangchonryon on their first visit. Patience, perseverence.