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Hell Without Fire, Abyss for Women

In the year 1945, on August 6, people in Hiroshima, Japan, were engaged in their daily lives. Suddenly, a bomb was dropped on them, wiping out over 70,000 innocent lives. A mushroom cloud formed prompting the surrender of Imperial Japan. However, 10 to 12 hours before this massacre, the USSR had already begun the invasion of Japan and occupied Japanese territories, including the Kuril Islands, Japanese occupied Chinese Manchuria, and the northern part of the Korean peninsula. The USA took control of the southern part of the peninsula. Following World War II, there was an agreement with the Soviets to accept the surrender of Japanese forces, with the 38th parallel dividing the two Koreas.

North and South Korea were influenced by communist and capitalist ideas respectively. In 1948, they became independent nations: the People's Democratic Republic of Korea, or North Korea, under Kim Il Sung, and the Republic of Korea, or South Korea, under Syngman Rhee.

The Korean War Timeline

Korean War Images, US Federal Government via Wikimedia Commons

  • June 25, 1950: North Korea launched a surprise attack on South Korea with the goal of unification of the Korean peninsula under communist rule. With USSR support, they invaded Seoul, the capital, and captured almost the entire land of South Korea. US support was urgent.

  • July 5: The USA invaded the Korean peninsula from the South.

  • September 15: UN forces joined the capitalist bloc and pushed back the North Korean forces.

  • September 27: Seoul, South Korea's capital, was recaptured by the capitalist bloc.

  • October 1: UN forces crossed the 38th parallel, invading North Korea and capturing Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea.

  • November 26: When forces got too close to the Chinese border, Chinese forces launched a major counter offensive, pushing the forces back once again towards the 38th parallel.

  • 1951 to 1953: The war raged, gradually turning into a stalemate-like situation. Armistice talks began, and an agreement was signed on July 27, 1953. It was not a peace deal and both the countries are still at war technically.

The war permanently separated families and killed many. The Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ, became a heavily fortified border. Both countries were struck by poverty and funded by their respective superpower allies. North Korean industrial growth was higher than its southern counterpart in the starting years.

Brief Political History of North Korea

North Korea has been a totalitarian one party communist state ruled by the Workers' Party of Korea. Inspired by the Soviet Union, the brutal oppression of people and strict media control have been common. Three dictators have ruled since independence:

  • Kim Il Sung, 1948 to 1994: The first president who built a massive personality cult. He is referred to as the "Eternal President of the Republic" and was known as the "Great Leader." His policies of military buildup and isolationism caused the economy to begin crumbling.

  • Kim Jong Il, 1994 to 2011: The successor of his father who continued his father's policies. He was known as "The Dear Leader." The 90s witnessed a famine yet Kim Jong Il was more interested in countering the West and a nuclear program.

  • Kim Jong Un, 2011 to present: He is the son of Kim Jong Il, known as "The Supreme Leader." He has been solidifying his rule and pursuing a nuclear program despite the country starving.

The Kim Family, Kappasi, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

How the Government Controls Its People

The North Korean government has an unbelievably oppressive yet dangerous set of rules. Even minor crimes or actions deemed normal in other countries can land someone in jail or even result in the death penalty. Every aspect of life is controlled by the government. 

Violence Against Women

The constitution of North Korea claims equality between the two sexes, yet it remains a deeply patriarchal society. Women in detention face sexual harassment from government officers and military personnel. Domestic violence, or any form of violence at homes, is viewed as a private affair. Otherwise, not much is known due to the country's absolute isolation from the world. Moreover, women are required to do state assigned jobs and forced labor, including participation in women's unions. A refusal can result in horrible conditions for them.

Religious Persecution

Religion is banned in North Korea, not because it creates social hierarchy or the general anti-religion sentiments in communist spheres, but because the only God North Koreans are supposed to worship is the leader of North Korea. If any religious book is found, people are forced into reformation centers. The Bible is targeted systematically, as it is associated with the USA and the West.

Fashion Policing

There are 14 state approved "socialist" haircuts, each for men and women. No other haircut is allowed. Any other hairstyle is considered rebellious or un-socialist, leading to being sent to re-education camps or summons by police. There are even instances of hair being forcibly shaved off too.

Blue jeans are not allowed either, apparently because they are a symbol of American capitalism. The fashion police deployed by the government often trims off or snatches any such clothing. Imagine the situation for women who are with children in such circumstances.

The Voting Season

Wait, there are elections in North Korea? Yes, but they are not free and fair. Only one candidate fights from each constituency and voting against her/him might result in you landing inside a re-education camp or death.

Some Other Laws

  • House burning: If your house is burning, you have to save the painting of the Kim family first and your own family next. Non compliance is punishable by law.

  • "Guilt by association": If a crime is committed by one of the members in a family, the entire three generations are jailed. Imagine a baby girl in the harsh prison conditions because his grandfather did not have a state approved haircut.

  • Prison: If someone plans to escape, you are supposed to tell the guards. The one trying to escape is then killed in front of all the cell mates. If there a suspicion of a possible rebellion, all the prisoners get shot dead. This used to happen in the Nazi concentration camps.

  • Food in Prison: Only a small amount of food is given to prisoners. There are reports of guards killing even children for attempting to eat more than what was provided to them. This is not what a communist utopia is as per Marx!

  • Songbun: This is the name of a social hierarchy system divided into core, wavering, and hostile classes, based on loyalty to the Kim family.

Escaping North Korea

Well, if things are this bad, why not just escape this hell? Well, one can, and many have even escaped successfully. Women are among the largest group of escapees, but it is a highly risky process.

The North Korea-South Korea border at the DMZ has shoot-on-sight orders. The North Korea-China border has less patrolling and is less difficult to cross.

Women who successfully escape the abyss and migrate to China are still not free from danger. They face the risk of forced marriage and trafficking leading to sexual harassment. There is no security for them either in China, and they might get deported by the Chinese government back to North Korea, where they face harsh punishment. The fortunate ones travel miles safely and reach South Korea via South East Asian countries like Thailand. A brief interview is taken afterwards in South Korea to ensure that they are not North Korean spies, and then they are given citizenship easily.

Hyeonseo Lee: the woman who escaped North Korea, Escape from North Korea, Steve Jurvetson, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Where is USA?

USA has been against the communist North Korea since the cold war and has always been supportive of South Korea by supplying them with American soldiers and other security assistance. Considering the current scenario, only an invasion seems to be a viable option to immediately save the people, particularly the women and children of North Korea. But unlike Saddam Hussein's Iraq, North Korea does have weapons of mass destruction, the nuclear weapons, which gives them effective deterrence against the west. Immense support from China also guarantees the security of the Kim family. 

Moreover, do you really think that the USA actually wants to solve the crisis? If this conflict is resolved and a democratic unification of a nuclear Korea occurs today, it would mean that the US is no longer needed. The US would never want losing influence in the region bordering China and the Pacific.

A Ray of Hope: The Silent Matriarchy

Economic conditions are pathetic, and bribery is taken frequently. Men are not able to earn properly and are busy at government offices many times. Families, as a result, have become dependent on women financially. The Jangmadang (informal or unofficial markets), the primary source of income for many, driving the economy somehow, are run mainly by women. Commodities of daily use are sold here, and even illegal and "dangerous" items like K-pop songs and K-dramas are available at these markets. North Koreans watch and listen to these together, and a sense of trust building occurs. The propaganda used to brainwash the masses by government media is losing its grip. North Koreans are slowly being disillusioned and realizing that the world outside North Korea is so free and beautiful. A silent revolution is underway, led by women in a deeply patriarchal society. 

The women in North Korea preparing food in the square, Roman Hark, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Then why is North Korea not banning it? There have been efforts to do so, but all failed due to large economic dependency on these markets. The disastrous currency revaluation in 2009 resulted in so much outrage from the people that even a government like the North Korean one felt powerless and was forced to review. Hopefully, this wicked regime topples in a decade or two and a democratic unification of Korea occurs where the US is less involved.

Final Thoughts

North Korea stands as one of the most oppressive regimes in modern history, a hell without fire where women and children suffer the most. While the world focuses on nuclear threats and geopolitical tensions, the daily reality for North Korean women is one of state violence, sexual exploitation, and crushing poverty. Yet in this darkness, women have become the unlikely agents of change. Through the Jangmadang, they are not just sustaining their families but slowly dismantling the propaganda machine that has kept their nation isolated for decades. The silent revolution they lead, trading forbidden media and sharing glimpses of the outside world, may ultimately prove more powerful than any military intervention. True liberation for North Korea must come from within, and it appears that women, despite bearing the heaviest burdens under patriarchy and totalitarianism, are lighting the way forward. The regime can control borders, ban fashion, and execute dissenters, but it cannot stop the spread of truth and hope that women are cultivating in the markets and homes across the country. 

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