Inside North Korea's bubble in Japan
Who?
Community of 150,000 Koreans
Holdovers from the 40s (WW2)
Network of schools
Language
Korean history
Ideology of great leader Kim Il-Sung
Children protected by guards
Animosity of Japanese
Change out of traditional clothing
Have never lived in NK
When?
Nation within a nation
1910 = Korean Peninsula annexed by Japan
Korean workers and soldiers
Sex slaves
1945 = loss of Korea
Separation
South // US
North (Kim) // USSR
Korean War = bitter division/pick a side
NK sent money to build schools in Japan
Chongryon
Became rich and sent money to NK
Heyday = $25b
Built schools, banks, gambling parlors
What happened? (70s)
Paradox
Right-wing nationalism
Japan
NK
Sent spies in Japan to kidnap people
Started its long-range missile program
Demanded that Chongryon repay its debts
Seized their HQ
Funding for NK schools went down
Pledge alliance to horrific regime
Victims of severe structural discrimination
Anti-Korean rallies on the rise
PM (Abe) = fierce nationalist + anti-Korean?
Leads to discrimination against Koreans (cycle)