*'A novel smuggled out of North Korea is creating a stir among publishers around the world.' (The Guardian) 

*Book review of French translation of “The Accusation” by Pierre Rigoulot: “The novel is proof that a totalitarian regime is incapable of destroying the free will of humans.” 

*Book report from North Korea: “A literary work that exposes the deception of North Koreans by creating deity cult around Kim Il-sung.' 

*Korean-Americans recommend Bandi for Nobel Prize in Literature 

*'The Accusation' hailed as masterpiece following in the footsteps of 'A Darkness at Noon,' 'Animal Farm,' '1984' and 'Doctor Zhivago.' 

*Celebrated for its descrpition of North Korea as 'hell filled with people flashing faux smiles.' 

Cho Gab-je (Head of Chogabje.com) 

'Doctor Zhivago' 

The film 'Doctor Zhivago' was made in the mid-1960s at the height of the Cold War. The film's British director, David Lean, is said to have instructed his scenario writer to depict people and love rather than ideological views. Doctor Zhivago is also a poet and Omar Sharif, who played that role, is said to have been given the same instruction by Lean.

'Don't try to act.' 

People who saw the movie will probably remember, but Sharif rarely cries or laughs in the film. He is either expressionless or very controlled in expressing his emotions in the film. This is what Lean wanted. Sharif is said to have had doubts while filming the movie. 'Am I doing the right thing?' he asked Lean. The director replied, 'Are you telling me you can't trust me? Just do as I say and people who see this movie will remember only you.' 

After watching 'Doctor Zhivago,' viewers are overwhelmed by the emotions expressed through Sharif's eyes. Sharif does not use words but his eyes to convey his emotions to the audience. Among the most memorable aspects of 'Doctor Zhivago' are the emotions expressed through the eyes of Sharif -- sorrow, love for Lara and anxiety as he spends his final moments with Lara as the secret police close in on them. Exaggerated acting can make viewers grow weary. But just the right amount of acting results in viewers feeling satisfied. And moderated acting leaves viewers yearning for more. 

British actress Julie Christie, who played Lara in the movie, was extremely lucky to get the part. Italian film producer Carlo Ponti, who produced 'Doctor Zhivago,' recommended that his wife, Italian actress Sophia Loren, play the part of Lara. But Lean declined saying Loren was too tall to play the part and chose Chrisite instead. Audrey Hepburn was also recommended for the part. 

Vast plains and snow-covered landscapes are featured in 'Doctor Zhivago.' Where was the movie filmed? In Finland? In Canada? Surprisingly, the movie was filmed in Spain (some parts were filmed in Finland and Canada). A set was created north of Madrid resembling parts of Moscow. Spain boasts the highest average altitude in Europe measuring 600 meters. Some parts of Spain even see significant amounts of snowfall during winter. There are also huge swathes of flat plains. 

Something interesting happened during the filming of the Russian revolution scene on the outskirts of Madrid. The actors and extras depicting the revolutionaries sang the left-wing anthem 'The Internationale.' Spaniards who were hired as extras knew the song well and did an excellent job singing it, because they were either part of the left-wing movement or were children of revolutionaries. Spanish police were apparently alerted after the extras sang 'The Internationale' during filming, mistaking them to be actual revolutionaries. Residents of a village near the movie set are said to have rejoiced after hearing the left-wing anthem being sung apparently thinking that Spanish dictator Francisco Franco had died. The final scene of 'Doctor Zhivago' features a dam. It is the Aldeadávila Dam located along Spain's border with Portugal. The final scene features a rainbow rising above the dam and it caused a significant amount of controversy after critics accused the image of lauding the future of communism. Critics also pointed out that a former communist was involved in choosing the scenario for the movie version of the book. But Lean had no interest in politics. 

Eighth-Highest Grossing Film Ever 

The movie features a scene where a mother and child barely manage to board a locomotive carrying Sharif's wife and her family. A closer look at the scene shows the woman screaming as she is sucked under the train just before boarding. She was hoisted aboard the train after passengers in the next section pulled her up. But the woman was seriously injured during the filming of the scene after she slipped and fell under the wheels of the moving train. Lean used the scene in the final cut. The British director is said to have been only interested in the movie and very little else. 

Even the colors of the costumes worn by the actors had to be approved by Lean, while the train was painted bright red in order to represent the revolution. And the scene showing the leaves of a sunflower next to Yuri (played by Sharif) falling to the ground after Lara, a military nurse, leaves the front lines, depicts tears of sorrow he feels in his heart. 

'Doctor Zhivago' was not immune to criticism after it opened in theaters. The main criticism is that the movie is too long. The film opened in theaters in the same year as 'The Sound of Music,' which ended up receiving more Oscar awards. 'Lara's Theme,' which is the theme song of 'Doctor Zhivago,' is famous for its sorrowful melody using Russian stringed instruments. The song won an Oscar for best theme song. The song was played by Russian musicians living in Los Angeles and a symphony orchestra, while the composer was French. It wasn't until 1988 that the novel was able to be published in Russia and the movie was not allowed to be shown until the 1990s. 'Doctor Zhivago' drew critical acclaim as the years passed and one cinema research center in the U.S. chose the film as the 39th best movie ever made. 'Doctor Zhivago' ranks eighth in terms of box office revenues. 

1. 'Gone with the Wind' (US$3.4 billion)

2. 'Avatar' (US$3 billion)

3. 'Star Wars' (US$2.8 billion)

4. 'Titanic' (US$2.5 billion)

5. 'The Sound of Music' (US$2.4 billion)

6. 'ET' (US$2.3 billion)

7. 'The Ten Commandments' (US$2.2 billion)

8. 'Doctor Zhivago' (US$2.1 billion)

9. 'Jaws' (US$2 billion)

10. 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' (US$1.8 billion)

Shining Literary Masterpiece of Anti-Totalitarianism 

The novel 'Doctor Zhivago' was prohibited from being published in Russia and was released in Italy in 1958. Its author, Boris Pasternak, was chosen as the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature the following year. But Pasternak was not able to receive the award due to pressure from Moscow. (Pasternak died in 1960 at the age of 70). 

'Doctor Zhivago' is considered as one of the shining literary masterpieces of anti-totalitarianism along with George Orwell's 'Animal Farm' and '1984' and Solzhenitsyn's 'One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich' and 'The Gulag Archipelago.' The novel 'Darkness at Noon' by Arthur Koestler, published in 1940, was the first literary work of anti-totalitarianism to gain worldwide recognition. The setting for the novel is a trial that took place in the Soviet Union in 1938 as part of a massive purge. The novel offers a critical look at how communism degenerates into a tool used for human destruction. Koestler was a Hungarian-British author and journalist who was a vocal communist until he became disillusioned by Josef Stalin's tyranny and began writing works of anti-totalitarianism. 

Modern Library Publishing, a subsidiary of U.S. publisher Random House, selected the 100 best novels of the 20th century according to editors at publishers and readers and 'Darkness at Noon' ranks eighth, '1984' 13th and 'Animal Farm' 31st on a list compiled by editors. '1984' ranks sixth on a list of 100 best novels of the 20th century compiled by readers, while 'Animal Farm' ranks 20th. 

'Animal Farm,' '1984,' 'Darnkess at Noon' and 'Doctor Zhivago' were either set during Stalin's totalitarian rule or uses the oppressive regime as a theme. Intellectuals in the West, who leaned increasingly to the left since the end of World War II, have been criticized for failing to properly criticize Stalin's totalitarianism. But the best writers of those days were very active taking on that subject through their novels. 

The same thing has happened in South Korea as writers and intellectuals, who have been drawn to left-wing ideologies, have largely ignored the deity cult created around the Kim Il-sung dynasty and failed to pursue the very goal of literature, which is to search for the things that make us human. It is against this backdrop that a novel written by a North Korean author and sent to South Korea by risking his own life has been drawing a lot of attention in the West. 

T

Talk of the Town 

Yoon Hee-young, editor of Chosun News Press, wrote in a recent column citing the Guardian newspaper:

Hannah Westland, publisher of Serpent's Tail, which won the rights to publish 'The Accusation' in the United Kingdom, made the following comments about the novel. 'The Accusation' isn't just a book with a good story behind it: in fact, it’s a collection of perfectly crafted novellas that, like Solzhenitsyn’s work, speak with the dissident’s authority and truth-to-power directness.' 

Starting last year, Korean-Americans began a drive to recommend 'The Accusation' for the Nobel Prize in Literature. The French-language version of the novel was published in early March of this year and a Japanese-language version is set to be printed soon. 

Why So Unpopular in South Korea? 

French historian, author and North Korean human rights activist Pierre Rigoulot recently stopped by Chogabje.com's office in Seoul. Rigoulot helped the translation and publication of the French version of 'The Accusation,' which Do obtained, was reported by the Monthly Chosun and published by Chogabje.com. Rigoulot also wrote a review of the book. 

Rigoulot said the seven novellas contained in 'The Accusation' were 'literary masterpieces' and wondered why the book, which was widely anticipated in France ahead of its publication, was met with such disinterest in South Korea. 

I explained that Korean-Americans were moved after reading the book and had started a drive to recommend it for the Nobel Prize in Literature. But Rigoulot deplored South Korean book reviewers and journalists for ignoring the book. I later read Rigoulot's review of the book and this passage stood out in my view. 

' 'The Accusation,' Bandi's collection of novellas, was published in Seoul in May of 2014, but most South Koreans are oblivious of this fact. Just what is causing this to happen or does this stem from sheer ignorance and disinterest? What is the reason behind such an unbelievable situation? Do some naive South Koreans, who are blinded by their hatred for their own government, actually think that a totalitarian state like North Korea could actually be their ally? Why are my South Korean comrades, who persistently keep up their fight against the North Korean regime, refraining from deploring this lack of interest? Does this stem from ignorance about communism? Is it so strange to view North Korea as the enemy even though the North and South Korea are still technically at war, since the 1950-53 Korean War ended merely in a cease fire agreement? Is it such an impossible task to recognize the actual state of affairs in the North? Or does the disinterest stem from a fear of losing an excuse to criticize their own government after acknowledging the true nature of North Korea? The seven novellas should be able to change perceptions among South Koreans.'

Bandi is a writer who lives in North Korea. Bandi wrote the novellas by hand during the late 1990s and early 2000s and succeeded in having them smuggled out of North Korea a few years ago. His book, 'The Accusation,' is a compilation of seven novellas starting with 'Defection' and ends with 'Red Mushroom.' The seven novellas depict life in the North. The author appears to have deliberately set the sequence of the novel from the passive resistance of defection, which develops into a vocal call for an end to totalitarianism in North Korea. 

In the novella, 'City of Ghosts,' a mother places a curtain over portraits of Karl Marx and Kim Il-sung hanging in her own house after her baby cries in fear after seeing them, only to be stripped of her privilege of living in Pyongyang and banished to the countryside. The novella, 'Life of Jun-ma,' focuses on a horseman who encounters one disappointment after another despite diligently abiding by communist principles. He finally cannot handle his despair and succumbs to death after chopping down his prized zelkova tree. The novella, 'Long Short Distance,' depicts a son who fails to arrive at his dying mother's bedside even though she is just a short distance away, due to the restrictions on movement and mechanical problems plaguing the North's trains. The novella, 'Pandemonium,' is about an aging woman who accidentally runs into Kim Il-sung while walking down the streets and ends up being used for state propaganda. The novella, 'Stage,' exposes the theatrical antics of the North Korean regime seen through the eyes of a state security agent. In the last novella, 'Red Mushroom,' Bandi reveals his true intentions and calls on other North Koreans to overthrow the Worker's Party, which epitomizes a dictatorship led by the proletariat. 

The Truth Behind North Korea's Facade 

Rigoulot said 'The Accusation' offers us a deeper look at the lives of North Koreans under the oppressive regime in a more effective way than any research report on the North. He also chose the novellas, 'Stage' and 'Pandemonium,' which reveal the facade the North Korean regime is trying to maintain, as the best literary accomplishments. 

'Stage' shows the need for North Koreans to resort to theatrics in order to survive. A word that is unfamiliar to South Koreans appears in that novella. The word is 'mudae jagam,' which can be roughly translated as stage immersion. 'Mudae' means stage and the word 'jagam' is defined in the North Korean dictionary as the ability of an actor to become fully immersed into the ideological beliefs and circumstances of a character. 

For North Koreans, stage immersion means they cannot merely play their roles as model citizens in a society created by the 'Great Leader' Kim Il-sung, but must fully immerse themselves inside their characters. Just playing their expected roles is not enough. The only way to do this, according to the author, is to fear Kim Il-sung and truly love him at the same time. 

The main character in the novella, 'Stage,' is Hong Yong-pyo, a state security agent. He is under a lot of stress due to his rebellious son, Kyong-hoon, who is in love with Sook, the daughter of a counter-revolutionary. Sook's father has been imprisoned inside a political prison. The novella is set in July of 1994, shortly after the death of Kim Il-sung. Every day, North Koreans must gather around various ceremonial altars set up across Pyongyang and cry their hearts out. Hong's job is to observe other North Koreans who have arrived at the altars and investigate which people are genuinely expressing their sorrow. 

Hong is surprised when he see's Sook's mother wailing after placing flowers on one altar. The woman was shedding genuine tears of sorrow! It was a scene that sent shivers down his spine. 

Hong had thought Sook's mother would superficially mourn in front of the altar, since her husband had been dragged off to a political prison camp. But he was proven wrong. Sook's mother was the physical incarnation of stage immersion. 

It may have been possible, Hong thought, for Sook's mother to cry out, 'Oh Great Leader!' or weep out loud. But how was it possible for her to actually shed tears? 

One of the most memorable parts of the novella is an imaginary conversation between Hong and his son. 

'That is what stage immersion is all about,' the boy said. 'Yes, stage immersion is what allowed Sook's mother to shed actual tears. But only actors and actresses have such abilities,' Hong said. 

His son replied, 'Are you telling me that you had no idea that she was an actress?' The boy added, 'Do you mean to tell me that you had no idea she has had 45 years of training in showing emotions that counter her true feelings? You personally trained her by constantly watch over her for the past 45 years.' 

Hong finally realizes that his constant surveillance had created the perfect actress. He realizes that he succeeded in achieving stage immersion, but loses the will to continue living as a human being. He no longer has any reason to live. 

'The sound of gunshot pierced the air on that July night. Hong Yong-pyo, who had been a fierce director in the stage immersion play and who was also a great actor, took his final bow before his comrades.' 

The suicide of a state security agent symbolizes the suicide of North Korea's political system.

Hell on Earth Where Everyone is Smiling 

The concept of stage play appears often as a theme in the seven novellas. This is because stage acting is an important component of the North Korean political system. The Great Leader and the North Korean masses are acting out the biggest play on earth. And Pyongyang is the stage. In the end, acting and life become one. Stage immersion is achieved. 

The most vicious plays in which North Koreans are forced to act are titled, 'I'm in Pain, Ha! Ha! Ha!' and 'It Tickles, Boo Hoo.' In other words, North Koreans must put on a smile even when they are hurting and shed tears even if they are feeling no sorrow. Most dictators seek to control their citizens in the public arena. But totalitarian leaders wield control over even the private lives of citizens. Kim Il-sung took that to a whole new level and controlled how North Koreans feel so that they had to smile even if they were in pain. This utter control over the emotions of people is even worse than totalitarianism. Bandi wishes to tell the world that Kim Il-sung is worse than totalitarian leaders such as Josef Stalin or Adolf Hitler. 

The novella, 'Pandemonium,' depicts how an old lady who accidentally crosses paths with Kim Il-sung on the streets ends up being used to publicize the benevolence of the Great Leader. As the woman is taken home inside an automobile provided by the Great Leader, her husband and granddaughter almost end up getting trampled to death by a huge crowd at a train station where they were waiting for her. As her husband and granddaughter are being treated at a hospital, the radio and TV continue to broadcast praises after praises of the Great Leader. The old woman has to endure propaganda broadcasts featuring her. She feels guilty and even feels angered.

'Oh, who had to endure pain equivalent to having one's fingernails removed, had to be the first one to laugh happily and smile in contentment. How can this be possible? What twisted and sadistic spell could possibly drive people to smile when they should be gnashing their teeth in pain?' 

Bandi wrote, North Korea is a hell on earth where everyone smiles even if they are in pain. Having to smile while enduring excruciating pain is probably the worst form of torture. The novella, 'Pandemonium' is a searing criticism of North Korea, where people do not even have the freedom to wince when they are feeling pain. 

More Desperate than Solzhenitsyn 

Rigoulot wrote about North Korea in a black paper on communism compiled by French intellectuals. Comparing 'The Accusation' to Solzhenitsyn's 'One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich' and 'The Gulag Archipelago,' Rigoulot told me, 'Any attempt at educating people about the dangers of communism must be accompanied by literature. That is how you can move people's hearts. 'The Accusation' has the power to do that.' 

Rigoulot wrote the following comments in his review of the French-language version of 'The Accusation.' 

'The author's attempt to blow the whistle on the oppressive regime of North Korea reminds us of Solzhenitsyn, the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1970, who was expelled from his own country for writing a book critical of the communist regime in the Soviet Union and publishing it overseas. Bandi resembles Solzhenitsyn in many ways. He not only exposes North Korea's elite and police, who trample on the rights of ordinary people and abuse their power, but also expresses awe and respect for those who merely wish to survive the wretched conditions in the North and hope to be able to express their true feelings without being forced to smile and succumb to feigned emotions and take part in an absurd play. In the novella, 'Stage,' the writer exposes the plight of North Koreans who are forced to take part in a sad play since childhood. It is here that we discover Solzhenitsyn who exposed Stalin's haughty lies during the Soviet era.' 

Rigoulot points out that Bandi wrote under more treacherous conditions than Solzhenitsyn. 

'Subtle differences exist between Bandi and Solzhenitsyn. Mikhail Gorbachev, who wanted to address the dark past of the former Soviet Union, gave him back his Russian citizenship in 1990 and dismissed charges of treason against the writer. Solzhenitsyn returned to Russia and was able to publish 'One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich' there, which exposes the bitter reality of life in a Soviet gulag. In contrast, Bandi had his novellas smuggled out of North Korea, which were then published abroad. Bandi cannot criticize the North Korean regime nor publicly call for an end to censorship as Solzhenitsyn did. Neither can we hope that Bandi would be banished out of the North just like what the former Soviet Union did to Solzhenitsyn.' 

Free Will Cannot be Snuffed Out 

Rigoulot lauded Bandi’s exquisite use of symbolism and metaphor. 

'The novellas require readers to search for metaphoric and symbolic meaning. Red mushrooms signify poisonous mushrooms planted by the communists. And the need to destroy the bird cage, in order to free the skylarks who do not wish to leave metaphorically describes the predicament of North Koreans. 

The novella, “City of Ghosts,” Bandi depicts the oppressiveness of the North Korean regime through a portrait of Kim Il-sung that strikes fear into the heart of a child. Throughout the book, readers discover satire and derision reminiscent of the sneering humor of former Soviet logician and social critic, Alexandr Zinovyev. Two novellas featured in “The Accusation” feature innocent communists who devoted their entire lives for the future of their country only to be deceived and betrayed by the system. Sol Yong-soo, the main character in “Life of Joonma,” and his long-time friend devote their entire lives to the North Korean regime in order to achieve their dreams of creating a bright future for the people of the North. But Sol’s friend meets his death after toiling his entire life. Unable to contain his sorrow, Sol chops down a zelkova tree he planted to commemorate his acceptance into the Communist Party and dies of a heart attack.' 

In George Orwell’s “Animal Farm,” which satirized Stalin’s brutal regime, a horse named Boxer who dedicated its entire life pledging loyalty to a dictator (a pig named Napoleon) is cold-heartedly butchered after he is no longer of use.Rigoulot said “The Accusation” is proof that the North Korean regime has failed to destroy the free will of humans. 

'The North Korean regime takes away lives, snuffs out hopes and dreams and destroys the present and future, but failed to control the emotions of humans. That is because human intellect and emotions resist such moves. The North Korean writer who goes by the pseudonym Bandi is living witness to this fact.' 

Incitement 

Bandi chose to place “Red Mushroom” at the end of the seven novellas that make up “The Accusation.” This is an act of literary incitement. 

The main character, Ko In-sik, is a hard-working factory manager. He worked hard to ensure that the city in which he lives receives a stable supply of fermented soybean paste, which a staple ingredient in Korean cuisine. But his diligence incites the jealousy of others forcing Ko to face a public trial. Communist Party officials in the city want to blame Ko for the cessation of state distributions of fermented soybean paste and ease mounting discontent felt by the city’s residents. 

A judge asks Ko in front of an angry crowd of city residents. 

“Does the defendant Ko In-sik acknowledge his offenses?” 

Ko can be seen staring blankly into the distance as his lips murmur indecipherable words. Ko is staring at the Communist Party’s headquarters in the city, which resembles a red mushroom, and his handcuffed hands can be seen pulling out one imaginary red mushroom at a time as he quietly says, “This one and this one.” Huh Yun-mo, a reporter who was covering the trial, could clearly decipher the words Ko was uttering.

Ko’s words grew louder and louder. 

“Look, there’s more over there! Hey you! Pull those red mushrooms out of the ground before you go! They are frightful things! Hey! Wait!” 

The only people who can understand what Ko is saying are the reporter and his coworkers who have seen how the diligent factory manager was used and discarded by the Communist Party. Ko’s simple and naïve soul has finally started to wake up. 

'Ko’s naive spirit is finally able to recognize the poisonous mushrooms that have taken root in North Korea and he uses all of his energy to try and pull those deceptive and controlling funguses out of the ground.' 

“Pull Those Poisonous Mushrooms Out” 

Huh, the reporter, who has grown sympathetic of Ko, is moved by the factory manager’s words urging him to pull out the red mushrooms. For Huh, Ko is an innocent man who gave everything to the Workers Party of North Korea, only to lose everything he had. With eyes now full of anger over the treatment of Ko, Huh begins to notice the red mushroom that is the Workers Party’s headquarters. 

'How many precious lives are being sacrificed for that poisonous mushroom? The seeds sewn on this land by the teachings of that lion-haired red ghost from Europe have grown into poisonous mushrooms that have become the source of all of the pain and misfortune of human beings!' 

As we see Huh’s clenched fists as he stares at the red-brick headquarters of the Workers Party, we can feel Ko still screaming in the background. 

“Pull out those red mushrooms, those poisonous mushrooms, from the ground and from the entire planet forever!” 

At least in Bandi’s imagination, a revolution has already begun in North Korea seeking to topple the totalitarian regime. The transformation of Huh through the sacrifice of Ko mirrors what has happened to Bandi. The only characters in the seven novellas who decide to confront the North Korean dictator are Ko and Huh. At the end of the book, Bandi takes direct aim at the ghost of Karl Marx. 

By shouting, “Pull out those red mushrooms, those poisonous mushrooms, from the ground and from the entire planet forever!” Bandi seeks to mimic and respond to the last sentence of the Communist Manifesto: “Working men of all countries, unite!“ If this novel is read in North Korea, the last line will surely create a huge stir inside the hearts and minds of North Koreans. This is a book that must be read in both North and South Korea. 

Impressions of a North Korean 

There are North Koreans who have had a chance to read “The Accusation.” One North Korean responded to a prize contest by Chogabje.com seeking to hear about their impressions of the book and wrote the following comments. The fact that a North Korean read a book written by a North Korean author criticizing the North’s totalitarian regime and published by a South Korean publisher is quite an unprecedented event in itself. 

The North Korean, who identified himself as Do-jin, wrote,  

'I send this letter from North Korea, the land of darkness. I will use the terms North and South Korea in my impression of the book. I cannot reveal how I got my hands on “The Accusation.” All I can say is that I did not read it as a book, but page by page shown in photos. I’ve read “The Accusation” by Bandi three times. The more I read it, the more I realize the deeper meanings that are being conveyed. To South Koreans, Bandi’s novel will evoke sympathy and pity for the people of North Korea, who are suffering under the oppressive dictatorship of their self-appointed leader. “Why can’t you rebel? Why can’t you stand up and fight against a dictatorship that forces the starving wife of a man who has been dragged off to a political prison camp to shed tears of sorrow for the Great Leader? Why won’t you take up arms to fight for your freedom? Is North Korea filled with morons?” 

Readers in South Korea will surely feel this way. I know, because even I often feel that way living in North Korea. 

As I read “The Accusation,” I felt a profound level of meaning as the book reveals through realistic stories the origin of the power that has mesmerized North Korea’s 20 million people into utter submission.

Intimidation based on summary executions and brutal political prison camps alone are not the only means through which the North Korean regime manages to get 20 million people to capitulate without resistance as they moan in pain inside. The cult worship involving the Great Leader allows the regime to paralyze the minds of North Koreans from thinking logically and my 20 million countrymen have been mesmerized by this belief. The darkness that blankets the land in which I live is due to Kim Il-sung. But even now, 90 percent of North Koreans have no idea of what has happened to them.

Kim Il-sung is a former independence fighter during Japan’s colonial occupation who is a legend among North Koreans. He is a great leader who is responsible for transforming an undeveloped country into an industrial powerhouse. He is also the father of all North Koreans united under the banner of communism. My country ended up becoming poor, because of his son, Kim Jong-il’s poor political leadership. We did not have lofty expectations about Kim Jong-il, but the system Kim Il-sung created is not fundamentally wrong.

It is because of this common belief that North Koreans refuse to protest even though they must endure pain and suffering as their basic human rights are trampled upon. It is difficult to expect any type of resistance in North Korea in the name of democracy as long as its people continue to believe this. We are just waiting and waiting for another leader like Kim Il-sung to come and save us.

Bandi uses simple short stories to offer a philosophical explanation to this phenomenon. This is what he wrote in “City of Ghosts.” 

“Do you know what is the greatest theory developed by Marx? It is not his theory of capitalism nor his scientific theory of class struggle. The most important theory Marx created is the theory of proletarian dictatorship! Every North Korean knows what that is and this is why they are putting up with everything.

Those words contain Bandi’s perception of North Korea, which has taken his entire life to realize. The communist ideology promises everyone a life free from exploitation and oppression and this is what keeps North Koreans going. Proletarian dictatorship can be translated as class struggle. From the perspective of class struggle, the enemy is not categorized according to sovereign borders or ethnic groups. Rather, enemies are clearly identifiable according to the possession of wealth and knowledge and differences in ideological beliefs. That means even fellow North Koreans who do not share the same ideology can be the enemy. Under a proletarian dictatorship, you can kill your own family member if they do not espouse the same ideology as the state. Marx says communism begins where proletarian dictatorship ends. 

Communism was created in order to provide a reason for revolution. Communists must continue to fight each other until there are no targets left for a revolutionary struggle. Portraits of Kim Il-sung and Karl Marx hang next to each other at Kim Il-sung Square in Pyongyang. The aim is to convey the message that Kim Il-sung is realizing the theory created by Marx. So anyone who does not submit becomes an enemy of the proletarian dictatorship. Through his novella, “City of Ghosts,” Bandi sheds light on the evil regime of North Korea that has gained absolute control over the minds of North Koreans. The true value of Bandi’s novel is not because it blew the whistle on North Korea’s cult worship of its leader, but in telling the world about the essence of Kim Il-sung’s “benevolence.” North Koreans never associate the pain and suffering they are enduring with Kim Il-sung. 

There is a poem I learned in school as a child. It is called “Paektusan” by Cho Ki-chon, who is considered to be the father of North Korean poetry. 

Every North Korean fell in love with the heroic exploits of Kim Il-sung as he fought Japanese colonial soldiers during Japan’s forced annexation of Korea. I myself was one of them and I still remember the poem. In his poems, Cho praised Kim as the leader of the partisans and a hero who saved our people from Japanese oppression. This poem, rife with lies and hypocrisy, succeeded in mesmerizing North Korea’s 20 million population. 

Cho wrote the poem in 1946. Until then, we did not really know much about Kim Il-sung. Kim Il-sung became a hero not through his actual exploits in battle, but through this poem. 

This is why I abhor poets. North Koreans still feel a profound sense of guilt in blaming Kim Il-sung for taking away their rights and freedom. The poets in my country must realize the enormity of the crime they have committed against their own people by reading Bandi’s work based on his feeling of rage. 

Bandi’s spirit of resistance and criticism must be emulated. Bandi’s novel will pierce the hearts of the pseudo writers in North Korea and at the same time show us where are struggle should be headed. The 20 million people of North Korea, who are suffering under the oppression of the Kim Il-sung dynasty, should launch their struggle to shed light on Kim, whose legacy is the reinstatement of feudalism in the North. 

Dojin from the land of darkness.' 

Indictment Against Hypocrisy of South Korean Intellectuals 

This North Korean said Bandi’s novel is an indictment of the pseudo writers and poets of the North who created the deity cult around Kim Il-sung. But I believe South Korean intellectuals, who have failed to indict the North Korean regime, should also be indicted. After reading “The Accusation,” I was left with the impression that Bandi wrote the novel with his heart and soul. There is no air of pretentiousness commonly found in many other popular novels. Bandi uses the Korean language to describe scenes and emotions that are familiar to all of us. One of the advantages of Korean is its ability to describe natural phenomenon. 

One of the major downfalls of Western intellectuals was to condone Stalin’s massacres. South Korean intellectuals are also guilty of failing to criticize Kim Il-sung’s juche ideology of self-reliance. History will deliver its verdict on these people soon. From that perspective, Bandi’s “The Accusation” not only marks the victory of one human over the vicious oppression of an evil leader, but is also proof of the power of literature and a burning indictment of the hypocrisy of South Korean intellectuals. 

Bandi’s “The Accusation” drew so much attention around the world, because of its literary value rather than the charges it makes. An act of indictment must be transformed into literature in order for it to gain widespread acceptance and to move people’s hearts.