The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Journey deep into the world of Kim Jong-un, one of the most ruthless men on the planet

2021-01-28T10:43:32.352Z


The producers of a revealing documentary about the leader of North Korea spoke with Clarín about this enigmatic leader from an unknown land.


John Tenth

01/28/2021 7:24 AM

  • Clarín.com

  • World

Updated 01/28/2021 7:24 AM

In some ways, North Korea is the closest thing there is to a

terra incognita

in the 21st century.

Although it is possible to locate it on the map, and the basic information is available to anyone who wants to search it, the country ruled by the Kim family

for more than 70 years

remains a mystery that generates

fascination and horror

in equal parts.

And within that scenario, there is no bigger enigma than the one surrounding its current leader, Kim Jong-un.

Spurred on by the desire to spy behind the Korean veil, the National Geographic channel launched the series

North Korea Uncovered

,

consisting of five documentaries

.

The first of them opens on February 1. 

Between nuclear weapons and cyberattacks, an episode dedicated to Kim, the current 36-year-old strongman of the "hermit empire" who is only the third person to rule the country, could not be missing.

Entitled

The Mind of a Dictator

, the 120-minute documentary traces Kim's life from his Korean childhood and adolescence in Switzerland to the present, already established as perhaps the

most enigmatic and ruthless leader

on

the planet

.

"Our intention was to try to put together a

slightly more complex portrait of this man

, whom we sometimes judge in a one-dimensional way," said the documentary's executive producer,

Kate Quine

, in a press conference via Zoom in which she participated.

Bugle

.

Montage of a photo of Kim Jong-un from his years in Switzerland.

Photos: courtesy National Geographic

"We are dedicated to investigating how were his years in Switzerland, which we believe are key to understanding who he is, and what are the dilemmas he faces," he added.

A story that encompasses the crimes with which the regime supports itself financially with the

leader's devotion to Hollywood films

.

“We found out that Kim's bodyguards are running alongside the limo because they like the Clint Eastwood movie

In the Line of Fire

.

A way to replicate Hollywood in its own way, "explains David Glover, the producer of the documentary who was also part of the interview.

If there is something that distinguishes the position of Quine and Glover, it is their predisposition to

look at Kim as a complex and contradictory man

, pulled if you will between two poles that shaped him and that coexist within him.

On the one hand, the brutal family inheritance received from his grandfather and father, the fierce Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, who created and perfected the reign of terror that reigns in North Korea.

Kim Dong Chul, the US citizen accused of spying for the CIA, who has spent the longest time in prison in North Korea .. Photos: courtesy of National Geographic

His place within this dynasty would clash with the experiences he had during the years he lived in Switzerland, where he could be a normal young man in a western country who went to school, smoked with his friends and

lived his passion for basketball without worries

.

"Kim Jong-un is going through a dilemma: he

wants to be a legitimate ruler

, but at the same time he is strongly conditioned by the history of his family," Quine launches by way of summary.

Dreaming of Madison Square Garden

Like all mortals, many of the keys to Kim Jong-un

are found in his childhood

.

The documentary traces the Korean leader's formative years as Kim Jong-il's pampered son, a childhood brimming with luxury but seemingly devoid of affection.

Kim Yo-jong, the sister of the North Korean leader.

Photos: courtesy National Geographic

Young Kim was not allowed to interact with other children and his

first playmates were his bodyguards

.

In fact, the documentary features an interview with a bodyguard who spent time with him during his childhood, and who managed to escape from North Korea.

Perhaps the most notorious finding of the documentary is having obtained testimonies from people who shared Kim's life during his years in Switzerland.

The story of a former classmate from school is recounted, who speaks publicly for the first time

about his visit to the leader in North Korea

, as well as the abandonment that Kim suffered by his uncles, who in those years pretended to be his parents.

“One fine day, his uncles decided to defect to the United States.

They left in the middle of the night without saying anything

and left Kim, who at the time must have been around 13 years old.

It is impossible to know how an episode like this must have marked him at such an early age ”, Quine says.

Despite this episode, the impression of the years spent in Switzerland has left an indelible mark on Kim.

“The only person in the world who is friends with both Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump is Dennis Rodman.

And Rodman says that one of Kim's dreams is to one day be able to see

an NBA game in Madison Square Garden,

"says Glover.

Image of the meeting between Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump at the 2018 Singapore Summit. Photos: courtesy of National Geographic

"There is clearly a psychological push in him, and this is already a personal opinion, but I think that his attempts to reform North Korea are genuine, and are based on his own experiences," he completes.

Despite these inquiries into the leader's dilemmas, the

brutality of the Korean regime

always hovers.

Stories of purges, torture, and disappearances of disgraced political figures circulate amid all the significant political episodes that are recounted.

Within that universe, the murder of Kim, Jong-nam, Kim Jong-un's half brother, at the Kuala Lumpur airport in 2017 appears as the most significant event due to the

sophistication of the attack coordinated by North Korean agents

.

“The story of the woman who was recruited to murder Kim's brother is fascinating.

She thought she was taking part in a television show that makes street pranks, and she

never knew she was going to kill someone

.

When you read that, you can't believe it's true.

Upon meeting her, and the circumstances she was going through, one comes across an incredibly moving story, "explains Quine, who adds that the documentary will see

all the footage from the airport

where the attack is shown.

Siti Aisyah, one of the young women involved in the murder of Kim Jong-un's brother.

Photos: courtesy National Geographic

While there is only speculation about the possible reasons why Kim Jong-un had his half brother murdered, the suspicion that he was

passing information to the CIA

about the Kim family comes to light as a compelling motive when the history of North Korea is taken into account.

“Animosity towards the United States is a factor that appears as a family legacy, something that is understandable at one point.

North Korea was bombed so brutally during the war in the 1950s that some even said the country looked like

a 'lunar surface,' ”

Glover says.

From Trump to the future

The three encounters with Donald Trump were Kim Jong-un's first serious foray onto the world stage.

According to the data collected by the documentary makers, the Korean leader had high expectations at the Hanoi Summit in being able to reach some kind of agreement with the former president of the United States that would allow him to

lift the sanctions

against North Korea.

The three encounters with Donald Trump were Kim Jong-un's first serious foray onto the world stage.

Photo: AFP

“The details of the Hanoi Summit are incredible.

Kim took a huge risk with this initiative, but it did not succeed.

The frustration is palpable in the fact that they

got up on the spot and did not touch the food

.

John Bolton, Trump's former National Security Advisor, also told us what it was like to experience that moment in Hanoi when everyone realized that no settlement could be reached.

It was a dramatic moment, ”says Quine.

Without Trump in the White House, it is difficult to predict what will happen to the US negotiations with North Korea.

However, documentary makers believe that there is still an

open window for a possible negotiation

.

North Korea: The Mind of a Dictator

premieres Monday, February 15 at 10 p.m. on National Geographic.

Source: clarin

All news articles on 2021-01-28

You may like

News/Politics 2024-03-28T10:35:43.848Z

Trends 24h

News/Politics 2024-03-28T06:04:53.137Z
News/Politics 2024-03-28T05:25:00.011Z

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.