North Korea: The King Is Dead, Long Live the Queen?

It’s all over the news again this morning, he’s [Kim Jung-Un] dead. Or he’s a vegetarian. It’s all speculation at this point but something is going on. The more news outlets report his demise, the more likely it’s true.

The potential for bad things to happen are apparent. A power struggle sparking a civil war would not be out of the question. The other thing would be a mad dash for the borders. In either case an international incident could result.

Is a peaceful transition of power to the younger sister the most desirable outcome? I recall the optimism when the unknown boy took the reins on the death of his father, Kim Jong-il, in 2011. Educated in Switzerland, clearly an aficionado of the finer things of life, and a basketball fan to boot; what was there to be cynical about. It was a new day.

It didn’t take long for the next Kim to consolidate power and begin a reign of bad behavior that at first rivaled and then surpassed his elders. There is not a reason in the world to place much hope in yet another Kim even if she is young, reasonably slim, and good looking. Although younger sister Kim Yo-jong is the apparent front runner, there are other Kims that may have the backing to throw their hat into the ring. The name of Kim Pyong-il, another relative in the ruling Kim family, has popped up.

This is an excerpt from my upcoming novel, Between Heaven and Earth (Guy is explaining to Jeong Sook the cultural significance of St. Patrick’s Day);

“Talked to God?” Jeong Sook was impressed and a little jealous. “What they talk about?”

“The usual stuff I suppose,” Guy informed her. “In one dream he was told he should escape and was led to a ship that was heading for France. He snuck on board and was free. Apparently God had called him to

return and convert the land, like in my story.”

“Did he go back?”

“He sure did. He converted Ireland and drove out all the snakes!”

“Snakes,” she thought for a moment and said, “somebody needs to drive the snakes out of North Korea.”

“They got snakes in North Korea?”

“They sure do and they mostly named Kim!”

Jeong Sook may have had the right idea. The best idea may be to drive out the brutal Kim regime.

Obviously I’ve given it some thought. Here is a fictional account that I wrote as an epilogue to Between Heaven and Earth.

In the early morning hours the shaman, Kim Soo Bom, started up the holy mountain once again. Nowadays the daily climb was becoming increasingly burdensome but he estimated that he had a good ten more years in him. As the years had passed and his physical condition declined his sensitivity to the invisible world seemed to increase. In conclusion he was optimistic that his best years were still ahead of him.

The winds of change were blowing across the peninsula. At first the change was imperceptible. Then over time it began to trend and by early summer Kim Soo Bom knew for sure a major shift in the firmament had taken place. Being quite attuned to the ways of the natural world, the moodang knew that change is inevitable and occurs gradually and at a similar rate as the spring becomes summer.

He knew well that the visible and invisible worlds were reciprocal realms and events in one couldn’t help but affect the other. Things were worked out on earth and were reflected in heaven and its phenomena, great and small, was then played out on the earth. By early summer our man of the cloth knew something big was afoot.

One day in late June, the city of Seoul woke to the news reports on YTN that Kim Jong-Un was missing. He hadn’t been seen in more than a week and the government and the Workers party were showing signs of being in disarray. Three days later, CNN began running stories of sightings of the pudgy dictator in Bern. A much needed vacation? Probably not. He was also photographed entering a bank in Zurich. Surely he was visiting his money. Next it was reported he was shopping around the local real estate markets for an appropriate villa.

As the sightings, stories, and rumors snowballed, speculation that he was as gone for good began to surface. In North Korea there was a brief calm before all hell broke loose. Upper level party cadres and government officials broke first and began heading for the borders. Next it seemed like the entire population was driving, riding, and walking to the nearest border. China to the north and South Korea in the opposite direction were the only options. On the first day the transportation system, composed of planes, trains, and buses became overwhelmed and broke down.

Intelligence services and governments around the world became alarmed and an international crisis was soon in full swing. China quickly began moving half a million troops to the border and began making a show that they would not only block the refugees from entering China but would cross the border to restore order.

The first Marine Division on Okinawa embarked on ships and sailed to meet up with the three aircraft carrier groups that were on the way. The United States made it known in no uncertain terms that China was not to cross the border.

The South Korean Security Council met in a marathon session to deal with the emergency as a wave of refugees streamed toward the 38th parallel. The president of the republic was often on the horn to the great white father in Washington .

It was finally decided that the Republic had no choice, on humanitarian grounds, but to accept the human wave fleeing the anticipated chaos in the north. Great resources were mobilized and put in place to vet, administer, feed, and take care of more than a million folks.

The more difficult problem was what to do about the increasing chaos in the collapsing DPRK. China proposed a temporary division and occupation by China and South Korea. Both the US and The Republic said absolutely not. That’s how we got in this mess in the first place.

The United Nations Security Council also met in emergency session to hammer out a plan to not only bring order out of the chaos but to move towards the future. It was agreed that Korea should be one nation. It was further agreed that the 1947 UN mandate would serve as a mechanism to create a united Korea. A peninsula wide election was ordered to take place under the supervision of the UN within one year.

In the meantime, the former DPRK would be administered by the security council. For practical purposes, China would take control of the northern borders. South Korea would control their common border with the north. In addition, South Korea would move to handle civil, police, and humanitarian issues in the capital city and throughout the country in preparation for free and fair elections to choose a government and a leader. The US forces in South Korea would remain, under the UN Command that had been in place since 1950, and would provide security. Backed up by the fleet, the Marines would stay onboard ships at Hungnam to discourage any overt move by China.

It was a plan with lots of uncertainty but it was a plan. Against all odds, the thing held together as Koreans organized and maneuvered to form the first free united Korea since the end of the last royal dynasty. The ghosts of Lee Sigman, Kim Koo, Ahn Jung-geun, and other patriots were called on. Political, social, and religious groups jockeyed for advantage. By the autumn several candidates for president, in the north and the south, emerged but there was no front runner. No candidate could seem to gain the recognition and support of folks in both the north and the south.

Just about the only group that could marshal a significant following in the north and the south was Chondogyo, the Way of Heaven. They put forward a name that was known and respected by their members in both the north and south. Amazingly enough it was Kim Jeong Sook’s father. As a former prisoner of conscience in the Gulag and a defector he was attractive to many. By late November he was being called the savior of the nation and was elected president of the new nation, OneKorea.

Of course, both Guy and Kim followed these events with great interest and wondered what it all meant. On occasion they got together and mainly talked about Jeong Sook….

Ah well, this is what I would like to see happen.