Jebusrocks

What r ur opinions on him?
I personally don't see Kim Il Sung as a tyrant figure at all. THough I only lived in Korea for the first eight years of my life; the said influences were still very strong against Kim JOng Il and Il Sung.

Most South Koreans are blinded by the fact that Il-Sung was simply trying to unify the divided Korea during the Korean War; not really invade it. Il Sung had spent most of his life training his men and fighting to liberate Korea with Soviet help; and Stalin promised him that; when the war was over; he would lead Korea, already creating the DPRK's army.

When Korea was divided (the US wanted a part of Korea as a democracy nation.. basically as a buffer shield to Japan from the rest of Communist countries); North Korea had attracted more skilled people than the South. This was largely due to the fact that Kim Il Sung was already a revered figure in all of Korea amongst other independent fighters as Kim Jwa Jin, and saw much more prospect in the north than the south.

Throughout the war, the DPRK armies had never acted fouly amongst its captured cities (not on a wide scale anyhow); allowing the Koreans to live on their accord; this contrasts quite differently to South Koreans/Americans, who upon re-capturing Seoul, executed a lot of its citizens for "treason".

It is also believed that Kim Il Sung would have opened its doors to the world much earlier had he had a unified korea, after Stalin's death; and definately after the fall of the USSR; where even with only half of Korea he seemed determined to talk with South Korea even to terms of unificiation; his goal.

Most South Korean teenagers nowadays see NKoreans as villians that should be oblierated; despite the fact that some of them might be related and that North Koreans are suffering more from Jong Il's reign than we are. WHat are your opinions?

fledse

Yes, that might be true. As a Anti Japanese resistance, Kim Il Sung showed his capacity to kick Japan out of the Penninsula. Most South Korean schools fail to teach them anyhow.

It looks like you are dealing with some what political issues of him in ROK, where Pro Japanese establishes "The National Security Act," which avows that "any speech or activity that may help Communisitic ideas to spread or to praise North Korea may be banned."

The act effectively deter scholars to discuss Kim Il Song because before 1987, when ROK finally becomes democractic nation, even mentinoning Kim Il Song was regarded as an infringment of the act, meaning that KCIA suddenly knock your doors, took you into custody to forceful investigation, and etc.

But, after that, most South Korean historians agree that Kim Il Sung was a good figure in resisting Imperialistic Japanese.

It should be noted that, though, Kim Il Sung is a bad ass guy because Kim Il Sung refused to accept a proposal from nationalistic leaders (more like Independent Leaders during Japan's illegal occupation).

It is Kim Il Sung who broke the unification of Korea.
Of course, Rhee Sung Man (South Korean first president) was even worse guy than Kim, but Kim was the cause of divided into two Koreas.

fledse

It is true that most of intelligent South Korean wanted to move into North Korea for various reason.

First reason is that South Korea failed to establish the idiot Pro Japanese class, who exploited Koreans beyond Japan's power, which I really really hated.

That's why I commented the South Korean first President Rhee Sung Man was even worse than Kim because, in South Korea, Pro Japanese could lead the nation, exploiting Anti Communism.


Unlike France, where French vanish and punish every Pro Nazi, South Koreans failed to do so; rather Pro Japanese were emphasized by U.S. Army because U.S. Army needed police, government employees, and these kind of people to control South Korea after 1945.

So, even though Pro Japanese should have been all shot, they just change into Pro Americans for sake of their lives and wealth.
But, in North Korea, Kim Il Sung all shot and punished every Pro Japanese class family, which is still in effective nowadays.

That is the primary reason lots of skilled people moved into North Korea because lots of independent army personnels in South Korea were somewhat oppressed by Pro Japanese.

Secondary would be lots of intelligent were very welcome and praised the Communism ideology because Communism ideology itself is perfect:"every one should have the same opportunity and should be distributed the same amount of food. Plus, there is no gap between the rich and the poor."

That just blinded the intelligent.

fledse

If you are ever interesed in Korean politics, it is always fight between Pro Japanese and nationalistic leaders.

The President Roh Moo Hyun suicided himself (crying), and he has been always fighting against the conservative party in South Korea, which is defined as Pro Americans. But as I described, the conservative in Korea is Pro American, whose background rooted from Pro Japanese during Japan's illegal occupation.


Where the heck imcumvent Korean president, Lee Myung Bak, was born?
Although he always argues he was born in Korea, but Wiki, Britannica, CNN, BBC, and almost every non Korean sources say

Lee Myung Bak was born in Osaka, Japan.

Of course, borning in Japan is not really related to Pro Japanese, but if you consider Lee Myung Bak's policy, the policies are more like Pro Japanese.

That kinda of a person was elected as a president because lots of Korean public fail to recognize Pro Japanese politicians though more and more Koreans are now figuring out Pro Japanese politicians.


These conservative politicians even voted to refuse publishing biographical dictionary, which contains Pro Japanese people during Japan's occupation.

Why? Because their fathers and grand fathers names are on there, which historians objectively determined.


The best Kim Il Sung's achievenmnet is that; he shot Pro Japanese collaborators, and track them down in nowadays; he made a law that even punish sons and daughters of collaborators

fledse

That is the true as Kim Il Sung had to give up Pyongyang, the North Korean capital; when he came back, he did the same to his own citizens. Of course many Pyongyang residents had to give up their hometown, following the retreating ROK-US troops.

Yeah, I don't know which side really started to massacre innocent people, but South and North Korean Armies were all the same to just normal Korean people at the war.

Both sides never endeavored to treat the captives as Geneva agreement said, and both sides all killed or massacred the residents of the recapturing cities.

diddyriddick

Um....Maybe I'm missing something here....Can North Koreans choose their leaders with a ballot? They surely can in the South.

Jebusrocks

Oh I didn't know Il Sung massacred Pyongyang citizens, thx!

Can't you consider Jeju massacre as the first? Though they fought for different reasons..

I wouldn't call it "pro-Japanese" just because Korea is going towards a more conservative, market economy...

I personally don't believe Kim was the cause, I guess he technically did, but I believe that he should have taken control of the Korean Peninsula, regardless of the type of government prior to Japanese surrender.