Open Sources, September 23, 2013

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SO, CHARM OFFENSIVE’S OVER, I TAKE IT? Pyongyang sends Chuseok greetings:

Just two days ago, one of the South Koreans selected for the reunion passed away. Three others said they couldn’t make it because of deteriorating health, the South’s unification ministry said.

For those healthy enough, like Park Tae-bong, 85, this reunion was supposed to be a chance to piece together decades of missing family history. He was set to reunite with one of his sisters. He also planned to learn more about his mother, who died in North Korea.

“We were hoping to hear about where her grave is,” said Park’s son, Park Jae-seung, who’d planned to accompany his father to the resort. [WaPo, Chico Harlan]

What’s striking about both the Post’s report and Yonhap’s is that neither one really explains why the North called these reunions off. Would I be going out on a long limb to suppose it was because the North asked for money and the South refused to pay?

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CRIMINAL CHARGES FOR NORTH KOREA’S LEADERS? Michael Kirby says, “What we have seen and heard so far — the specificity, detail and shocking character of the personal testimony — appears without doubt to demand followup action by the world community.” He doesn’t specify what the follow-up action would be.

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NORTH KOREA HAS LOST its own war on drugs.

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THE DAUGHTER OF THE MAN responsible for police operations in Pyongyang has defected to South Korea.

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NORTH KOREAN COAST GUARD fires on Russian fishing vessel.