DPRK ‘Rock for Peace’ Concert Nixed; Voice of Korea is No More
by Richardson ~ January 4th, 2007. Filed under: Anti-Americanism, Economics, North Korea.The administrator of “Voice of Korea,” Jean-Baptiste Kim, has apparently had an epiphany and will no longer be a mouthpiece for the North Korean government (although he’s still against “cowboy” Bush, U.S. imperialism, etc.). As Kim was the organizer, this sounds the death knoll for the much anticipated “Rock for Peace” concert that was to be held in March 2007.
In his rather long manifesto explaining his decision, Kim also reveals some of his background in South Korea, and his future plans now that he will not be devoted to DPRK propaganda full-time; “a small phone shop here in London,” and that he is, “very happy to come back to the normal civilian society.” (emphasis added) One has to wonder if he’s using the term “civilian” correctly.
How did Kim become involved with North Korea? “[A] North Korean diplomat I met in Paris gave me a solution how to express my anger toward South Korea. . .” Very helpful, North Korean diplomats. That was when he was 29, so it appears that Kim has been an agent of the North Korean government in France for the past 11 years.
But now Kim renounces his affiliation with the DPRK regime and admits that its isolation is self-imposed rather than a necessary reaction to outside threats, though he still clings to the U.S. imperialist line. As for his apologies for the DPRK, Kim writes “I must confess that all I said are lies,” and that he, “was the evil painter who painted fake images over the true phenomenon.”
A few excerpts from Kim’s long farewell:
For last ten years, I have done my very best to serve DPRK in great passion.
I did not hesitate to sacrifice my time, money, honour, effort, and family for the great fatherland and I was always proud of myself because I believed that I am doing right things for the entire Korean history. I was a man of belief who tried to rescue righteous Korean history from the wrong track which called US imperialism originated by Japanese colonialism. I have been working day and night without holidays and abandoned my jobs several times in order to work for the fatherland in maximum efficiency.[. . .]
The happiness in France does not mean that I forgot all the miseries I experienced in South Korea. My anger was still like the volcano and a North Korean diplomat I met in Paris gave me a solution how to express my anger toward South Korea. I have visited PyongYang for the first time with him and learned lots of things about the real North Korea. Since I was 29, I have been involved in many industrial trades including financial transactions and military trades as well as other media activities including Voice of Korea. North Korea is a very special country, maybe too special beyond my historical knowledge. By Instinct, or by my father’s blood, I resist every kind of authoritarianism which against the rights of ordinary people.
[. . .]
The current regime is not the leader of people but the royal family rules over the people. This should be changed into democratic elections and should give the freedom of speech and thought. People’s lives must be chosen by people’s favours, not by the dictatorial system. I remember that South Korea was exactly like that when I left the country long ago. However, I do not want USA rules over DPRK because I saw how Iraq and Afghanistan became under US rules. My resistance to DPRK politics has nothing to do with USA and I express the same resistance to US imperialism as well.
[. . .]
I regret my life with DPRK government for last 10 years but will not repeat the same mistake again in future. For last 10 years, I have learned lots of things that threatening DPRK is not the solution to make the country better. USA’s ‘gun first’ cowboy policy only makes the country worse and worse in my experience.
[. . .]
I also need to announce that ROCK FOR PEACE will be suspended along with myself. It was my passion to bring rock festival into North Korea but I decided not to continue on this project because I know full details of the event, the reasons, the purposes, the backgrounds, everything. The reason why I abandon the event is because the event was politically designed which gives more pains to ordinary people but more benefits to the regime. The event was designed to generate westernized reputations over the current isolated image of the regime. I have generated lots of reactions from world medias and I was about to use them in order to generate new political images for internal and external political purposes. It has been also designed to make more money while UN sanction is restricting DPRK rulers. I am pretty much sure that the money I create from this project will not benefit ordinary people but only gives political fund for ruling minority only. I have been interviewing with world medias about this project and consistently gave political arguments that WE ARE NOT ISOLATED but forced to be isolated by USA. I also gave lots of excuses while the interviews but I must confess that all I said are lies. I confess that DPRK is isolated, not forced to be isolated, and the reason of isolation is not the national security toward the independence. The true reason of the isolation is allocating maximum ruling security for the royal family and its servants. I was the evil painter who painted fake images over the true phenomenon.
USA should know that small amount of this kind of illegal money flow only feed the ruling minority who make ordinary people fall into worse conditions for their own sakes. But large scale of regular free trade at national level will make ordinary people awaken from internal darkness because they will taste the differences from outside world. The regime will be unable to control people when people are massively moving forward to make money for themselves. Do not threat them. It only makes them be cautious and this kind of tension only drive ordinary people fall into the famine and death. Let them trade freely and legally. I dare to say that they will never go back to the past when start to make money. The solution is not GUN but MONEY but do not give them money but allow them make money by themselves.
[. . .]
I am soon starting a small phone shop here in London selling mobile phones and I am very happy to come back to the normal civilian society. It has been very long time that I was away from the society. It is very nice to have a normal job like this though I am not sure for the success of this business. For symbolic purposes, I will use the web site of Voice of Korea as the web site of my phone shop. I think that it will be better not to shut down this web site for people to read my confession and know more about North Korea in free conversation with me though it is funny to see mobile phones soon here at the same place.
After 10 years’ long journey to wrong directions, I am very afraid of coming back to the society but will do my best to make
for my own family. I feel very sorry for the musicians who applied for ROCK FOR PEACE but better this way to stop right now. Happy New Year for all of you. Bye.
JEAN-BAPTISTE KIM
London, United Kingdom
January 1, 2007(emphasis added)
January 4th, 2007 at 3:34 pm
man, this guy is bitter.
i think maybe he could try rastafarianism next.
January 4th, 2007 at 8:25 pm
I don’t think his elevator stops at every floor.
January 4th, 2007 at 8:41 pm
But at least he’s on the right track; admitting he has a problem with socialist propaganda is the first step to recovery.
January 5th, 2007 at 11:48 am
If only we could do an intervention on Cumings.
Actually, if you pick a few things from Cumings writing and interviews here and there, you might decide that he also came to being a NK apologist after becoming bitterly disallusioned about the American-ness of American society — that baseball apple pie and mom stuff….
January 6th, 2007 at 12:33 pm
Jean-Baptiste Kim: “My Bad”…
RE my earlier post on No Man’s Blog regarding a proposed rock and roll concert in Pyongyang, North Korea called “Rock for Peace.” Here’s an excruciatingly perverse excerpt from an article that appeared on the Web site “Voice of Korea” las…
January 8th, 2007 at 1:27 pm
I have this strange feeling that “Jean Baptiste” is CIA/NIS agent.
I was hoping that he would succeed in bringing in western musicians of ANY political flavor into DPRK. Anything that promotes change in DPRK is good, even if it’s “merely” music.
God only knows that an improvement in the awful music that DPRK residents are subjected would be a solid improvement with the general quality of life in DPRK. The truth of the matter is, people will become more aware the disadvantages of living in an isolated world.
Maybe Kim Jong Il would take nothing less than Britney Spears sing the “Song of the Great General” accompanied by truelly atrocious NK synth disco pop.
January 8th, 2007 at 1:50 pm
I’m of the opinion that he’s a garden variety leftist crackpot.
January 9th, 2007 at 1:12 pm
I now want to hear Kim Myong-chol admit that his life has been a fraud, too.
January 9th, 2007 at 7:07 pm
I’d like to see him on national TV, ripping off a latex mask/wig to reveal Bruce Cumings.
January 9th, 2007 at 8:26 pm
Its a shame that South Korea has become the laughing stock of east asia because of the current administration. Its almost as if the last 50 years have been for nothing. What fools they have become.
February 11th, 2007 at 12:37 am
[...] Studies has related posts here and here. And here’s one more at No Man’s [...]
February 11th, 2007 at 12:40 am
[...] perverse excerpt from an article that appeared on the Web site “Voice of Korea” last fall (H/T: DPRK Studies): If you are a band playing any kind of rock, including heavy metal, then you can participate [...]
May 6th, 2007 at 5:49 am
Richardson: “I’m of the opinion that [Jean-Baptiste Kim]’s a garden variety leftist crackpot.” Hm. Perhaps. Do garden variety leftist crackpots organise rock festivals? (No, I know JB Kim didn’t quite manage to, after all, so you may rest your case?) But I feel the guy’s due some credit and respect. He did what he thought was best, not only “for himself” but “for society”, for a time, which takes some more efforts, conscience and guts than the garden variety people amongst us typically muster. His critical points against ROK are worth listening to (even when we disagree). AND he has mustered the temerity and guts and intellectual honesty [a term and concept not copyrighted by those with intelligentsia credentials] to *change his mind* and *go public with it*. We must assume that this also involves a significant personal risk — his dprk fellows, who have helped him for ten years, are not amused. He even *apologises*, a rare and commendable feat. (Finally, we ought not to sniff at people who make minor grammatical or idiomatic errors in a language far away from their own. JB Kim’s languages are Korean and French.)
I bow my head in respect to you, Jean-Baptiste Kim. And hope you write a good, thoughtful, honest book about it all. And that this book will sell 22 million copies in the DPRK.
Emigrants / defectors / refugees cause stir and interest and interviews and debriefings (and continue to lead difficult lives). We should also take a similar interest in “defectors” outside Korea that change line from “pro regime” to “against regime”.
May 6th, 2007 at 9:03 am
That’s not a recipe for respect; Stalin and Hitler also had slavish supporters who did what the thought was best, “for society,” and they deserve no such thing as respect, either. What make Jean-Baptiste Kim’s transgression all the more sinister is that he was in a free society and could see the regime’s lies, yet still chose to follow the path he did out of a desire for revenge towards South Korea. I see absolutely nothing to respect there.
My comment on his correct or not use of the term “civilian” was a reference to him actually being in the Korean People’s Army (KPA) or not, i.e., was he an honorary KPA member or just so in his mind (e.g., the former Soviet Union’s KGB would often make their agents honorary members of the Russian military, bestowing upon them the occasional medal for service as an incentive). It was not about his English.
It wouldn’t sell a single copy in North Korea. Normal citizens, much less foreigners, are not permitted to author books of any sort. Those who do are selected and tasked to do so (text books, propaganda, etc.). At any rate, any topic even slightly critical of the regime would never be permitted, and foreign books are also forbidden. As you have dealt with the Korean Friendship Association, I know you are aware of that on some level.
May 6th, 2007 at 6:06 pm
Thanks for comments, Richardson. For clarification: we agree more than we disagree. I might be using the “respect” word with different (euro)-nuances to it than when you apply it. And for the last comment: I am by all means *fully aware* that such a book could not be sold in the bookstores of dprk. I was applying an old Greek rhetorical device
termed “irony” (a difficult exercise on a clear day and particularly dangerous on an internet forum), but mixed with the two percent of utopian hopes that the people of dprk once upon a glorious time shall be able to freely read books from the rest of the world, and that (equally utopianly?) they shall do so with a natural and open attitude. Of all the propaganda pages exhibited by dprk studies, perhaps this is the one scaring and displeasing me the most:
http://www.dprkstudies.org/documents/nkpics/1pg042.html
Speaking of which: (1) Which foreign books *are* available in the best Pyongyang bookshops? Some old or contemporary novels by ROK authors? Soviet classics? Mao? Marx? Books describing the horror of capitalism and the horrible consequences of US imperialism? (2) Is the German “Goethe Institute” in operation in Pyongyang, as was planned from 2004? They should have a well-stacked international library, and really tried hard, at least, to keep “free entrance for everyone” as an absolute requirement for their generous no-strings-attached we-pay-all presence.