Kim Il Sung University: the Alma Mater of North’s Elite

Graduates of Kim Il Sung University Have Hold on Power-

Of the 455 North Korean officials that were examined, only the education background of 127 is known. Eighty, or roughly two-thirds, are graduates of Kim Il Sung University. 47 were graduates of universities other than Kim Il Sung University. It is hardly out of the ordinary to find national universities, situated in nations’ capital, to be the alma mater of the nation’s power elite. Even so, Kim Il Sung University stands out.

Graduates of Kim Il Sung University have a monopoly on power. Most of the officials from other universities came to power during Kim Il Sung’s days. Of the 47 graduates from other universities, 27 studied abroad, and most of them have already retired or passed away. If you take into account that the educational background of nine international relations major graduates are unknown and that there are six military university graduates, you could say that there are only a handful of graduates from elsewhere.

The departments that deal with South Korea and diplomacy are filled with Kim Il Sung University graduates.

The main players in the South-North Korean summit meeting – Kim Yong Soon, former Fatherland Restoration Association Committee leader; Jon Geum Chol, committee deputy leader; Lee Jong-hyok, Asia Pacific Peace Committee deputy leader; Song Ho Kyong, deputy leader – were all graduates of Kim Il Sung University. Ahn Kyong Ho, North Korean Committee for Implementation of June 15 Joint Declaration leader, who became famous after saying that the peninsula would be caught in gunpowder if the Grand National Party comes to power, is also a Kim Il Sung University graduate.

North Korea`s chief delegate to the Pyongyang talks, Kwon Ho Woong and Choi Seung Chol, Asia Pacific Peace Committee’s deputy leader, who is in charge of reunions of separated North and South Korean families, are also Kim Il Sung University graduates.

This information from the Ministry of Unification has its limits because only officials who work in diplomacy-related departments are introduced in detail. It is, however, safe to say that this is the same case in other departments as well, because North Korean society is very closed.

In the center of the power circles is Kim Yong Nam, chairman of the Standing Committee of the North Korean Supreme People`s Assembly; Choi Tae Bok, chairman of the Supreme People’s Assembly, the late former Foreign Minister Paik Nam Soon; and Kim Jong Il himself. They are all graduates of Kim Il Sung University. So are Kim Kyong Hee, Kim Jong Il’s little sister, and brother-in-law, vice director Chang Song Taek, and vice directors Lee Je Kang and Ryom Ki Soon. It is widely speculated that Kim Il Sung University holds a monopoly in the judiciary. The only law department is in Kim Il Sung University.

Kim Il Sung kept his friends called the “Mount Baekdu Range” during his rule. Most of them are now retired and in their place are Kim Jong Il’s colleagues called “Mount Yongnam Range.”

Solidarity is Strength, Rigidity is Drawback-

There are some 280 universities in North Korea. The fact that one university has a monopoly on top administrative seats in this situation has its strengths and weaknesses. Solidarity is most obvious strength. The graduates are instilled the thought that graduates of Kim Il Sung University will be first to get the rope. This solidarity leads to rigidity. This is an organization that does not value different opinions.

Students learn discipline and subordination in Kim Il Sung University. Even seasoned soldiers will be surprised at the discipline at Kim Il Sung University. After six or seven years of this, the students are molded into the system.

The biggest drawback is that North Korean education is closed and therefore does not equip students with an international mind. Textbooks at Kim Il Sung University do not even hold words like “geopolitical” and “Northeast Asian security order.” Instead, students are taught that North Korea is the center of the world. North Korea’s top two diplomatic characteristics, which are brinkmanship and greed, have roots in this education system.

Some say that diplomats familiar with the ways of the international society find it hard to thrive in the Kim Il Sung University organization. North Korea shocked the world by saying that it would only participate in the six-party talks if it was given money. This is something to be lauded in the Kim Il Sung University mindset.

The curriculum at Kim Il Sung University does not prize economic power. The students are taught that a strong mind and unity will lead to great power. Graduates of Kim Il Sung University start their career in an environment where all their superiors are their seniors and advance one step at a time after winning their superiors’ approval. These North Korean officials are known to look down on South Korean officials who made it to key positions the easy way.

zsh75@donga.com