Interesting Stuff: North Korea’s Homepage

Did you know that North Korea has a homepage? It’s true. They call it the Official Webpage of the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea — but it is a homepage with all the 1990s retro web design ideas the word conjures.

There is a top level domain for North Korea: .kp. However it was only established in 2007, probably after the homepage was created (which according to the copyright footer is also 2007). So, the URL is a prestigious http://www.korea-dpr.com/, perfect for a 90s style homepage.

There is multiple language content but the basic site is in English. They provide the usual stuff: info on the country, a gallery, images, tourism and so on. Some choice tidbits below. Here is how the state is described overall:

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is an independent socialist state that represents all the interests of the Korean people. The old exploiter capitalist class is a thing of the past, and today, the various sectors of traders, peasants and industrial workers, who once labored as pawns on a private-property chessboard, have become proud, dignified socialist workers[...]The main tasks of the government of the republic are to bring about total socialism in North Korea and to achieve peaceful reunification with south Korea completely independent of external forces. This will mark the achievement of national independence on the whole of the Korean Peninsula.

There is an eLibrary with about 30 PDF downloads of works, mostly by Kim Jong Il, as well as 100+ raw PDFs of unprocessed works. There is also a page on DPRK music, with mp3s of classic hits like “I love my Motherland”, “Don’t ask my name” and “Raise your weapons to wave the Supreme commander”. There is information about booking a tour of North Korea. There are links to North-Korean run English language news services that counter the “misinformation” of non-DPRK news and documentaries. And what 90s style homepage is complete without an FAQ? I’ve rearranged some items for rhetorical effect.

10. I’ve heard that everbody starves in North Korea. How is the food situation?
It is no secret that there was a crisis during the mid 1990′s in the DPRK. Because of the collapse of the Socialist market, and due to the isolation caused by US embargo and sanctions, the country suffered a difficult period. A natural disaster caused floodings, and combined with the other factors, it created a period which we now call the “Arduous Marchâ€? where the DPRK had to recover from this situation, and the collapse of the Soviet union while still unduring hostilities by the US who continually to this day try to stifle and isolate the DPRK. Since the end of the 1990′s and around year 2000, the country has completely recovered from the “Arduous Marchâ€? and has survived as a country which has now become even stronger and more independant than before.

13. Is North Korea a dictatorship?
No, the DPRK is a single-united-party constitutional democracy guaranteeing freedom of speech and assembly to all citizens. DPRK citizens play an active role in their nation’s political life at the local, regional and national levels, through their trade unions or as members of one of the nation’s three political parties, which include the Workers’ Party of Korea, the Chondoist Chongu Party and the Korean Social Democratic Party.

17. I hear that North Koreans are very poor. Is this true?
By international standards, DPRK citizens enjoy a very high standard of living. In Socialist Korea, the state guarantees all citizens the right to quality healthcare, education, stipends for the disabled, retirement pensions and access to recreational facilities, as well as a wide array of other state-supported services. Indeed, DPRK citizens are guaranteed many provisions that are uncommon in many developed capitalist societies, which are home to real poverty. Unlike in many countries of the capitalist world, the DPRK is a state free of homelessness, unemployment, prostitution and starvation.

8. Can I travel to North Korea as a backpacker? (Independent travel)
No. You must travel as a group only, even if you are the only participant you must be with Korean guides at all times.

4. Can I work in North Korea as a teacher/interpreter/(other)?
No.

Regarding the standard of living, item 17 is particularly interesting next to their page promoting doing business with DPRK. They list a few selling points in bold, the first being “Lowest labour cost in Asia”. Well, no shit Sherlock. “Stable. A government with solid security and very stable political system, without corruption.” Again, no shit, except for that last bit.

This of course reminds me of Soviet propaganda. According to my parents’ recollections of their childhood/teenage years, one of the most vocal bits of propaganda they were exposed to was that people in the west are incredibly poor. It was made out like half of the US population was homeless. Of course it is true as per item 17 that Soviet citizens did have socialised medicine, education and other services that many in the west did not have, and still don’t. But the overall average standard of material living was still orders of magnitude lower.

The whole homepage is almost cute in its childlike naivety. I don’t think there’s any irony to be had in the whole website. It seems to be genuine outreach to promote the Juche ideology outside of North Korea. As such, it should serve as a great example of the kind of tone-deafness and wilful ignorance that countries sometimes exercise about how they’re perceived from the outside. This is true for many other countries but here it is at its purest.