Like this:

“A U.S. human rights activist trying to raise global attention about the suffering of the North Korean people has crossed into the reclusive state, other activists and South Korean media said on Saturday.

There has been no comment from North Korea, which usually arrests foreign border crossers on site, or from U.S. officials.

–   Excerpt from Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5BP06R20091226

Watch these clips (***Some of them could be disturbing***)

North Korea Daily Life http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITBqRSMBWaM (4:09)

North Korean Camps - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FZMwoY7DyM (19:30) (Viewer Discretion advised!)

Escape from North Korea http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0EeXTG4mWw This report follows one family’s escape from North Korea

A Documentary - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJ6E3cShcVU (53:16)

Why is this activist trying to cross into North Korea illegally trying to raise global attention. Global attention for what? Why is North Korea reclusive and why are people suffering? This post deals with these questions.

Here is a little Wiki on North Korean History:

North Korea is a self-described Juche (self-reliant) state with a pronounced cult of personality organized around Kim Il-sung (the founder of North Korea and the country’s first and only president) and his son and heir, Kim Jong-il. Following Kim Il-sung’s death in 1994, he was not replaced but instead received the designation of “Eternal President”, and was entombed in the vast Kumsusan Memorial Palace in central Pyongyang.

Although the active position of president has been abolished in deference to the memory of Kim Il-sung, the de facto head of state is Kim Jong-il, who is Chairman of the National Defence Commission of North Korea. The legislature of North Korea is the Supreme People’s Assembly, currently led by President Kim Yong-nam. The other senior government figure isPremier Kim Yong-il.

North Korea is a single-party state. The governing party is the Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland, a coalition of the Workers’ Party of Korea and two other smaller parties, the Korean Social Democratic Party and the Chondoist Chongu Party. These parties nominate all candidates for office and hold all seats in the Supreme People’s Assembly.

Here’s an image of both North and South Korea at night. It’s said that the difference in the illumination levels is due to the difference in development levels between both states.

Well that does say lot about North Korea. Here’s something about religion in North Korea.

According to Human Rights Watch, free religious activities no longer exist in North Korea as the government sponsors religious groups only to create an illusion of religious freedom. According to Religious Intelligence the situation of religion in North Korea is the following:

• Irreligion: 15,460,000 adherents (64.31% of population, the vast majority of which are adherents of the Juche philosophy)
• Korean shamanism: 3,846,000 adherents (16% of population)
• Cheondoism: 3,245,000 adherents (13.50% of population)
• Buddhism: 1,082,000 adherents (4.50% of population)
• Christianity: 406,000 adherents (1.69% of population)

According to Kim Jong-il’s On the Juche Idea, the application of Juche in state policy entails the following:

1. The people must have independence in thought and politics, economic self-sufficiency, and self-reliance in defense.
2. Policy must reflect the will and aspirations of the masses and employ them fully in revolution and construction.
3. Methods of revolution and construction must be suitable to the situation of the country.
4. The most important work of revolution and construction is molding people ideologically as communists and mobilizing them to constructive action.

The Juche outlook requires absolute loyalty to the revolutionary party and leader. In North Korea, these are the Workers’ Party of Korea and Kim Jong-il, respectively.

What is happening within North Korea? Let’s find out.

People following any other religion other than the Juche philosophy are persecuted. People are brainwashed from the the very beginning of their life saying how great their leader is, including school textbooks. Christianity which is a big threat to the Juche philosophy is portrayed as evil and people openly religious are arrested and tortured. Public executions are common occurrences.

Tens of thousands of people are dying of hunger and children grab food wherever they can find them. Anyone suspected can be arrested and thrown in torture cells, irrespective of being women or children. People are brainwashed to that extent that they believe this is how life is, starving, grabbing food and dying. But realization is dawning slowly. Thousands of people are fleeing from the torture. If anyone fleeing is caught the entire family is thrown into a prison camp and tortured. Pregnant women are beaten mercilessly. Most of them end up with miscarriages. People are generally of stunted growth due to being malnourished. The sad story doesn’t end here. Even if they are successful in fleeing the country to China, they still have to be hiding from the Chinese officials. China hands over illegal refugees back to North Korea. Fate of those captured as you may guess is bleak! Those successful in making it to Thailand are handed over by Thai officials to South Korea after imprisonment of some months.

No amount of writing can give you an idea of the torture going on in this place. I know we have our own problems, personal and national, but this is plain human cruelty!!

We need to join hands to spread message about these inhuman acts so as to put pressure on the merciless government of North Korea. Please pass this message on. It is a small way of helping those people who are dying daily of starvation and torture.