Editorial: Change in North Korea Monday, 26 December 2011 05:35

As a young Kim Jong-un takes the reins of North Korea after the demise of his father, there is only one way he can lead his country and people forward – by doing all that is required to end the isolation of his country and reintegrate it with the international community. That will require some undoing of the unpopular policies his father had framed.

For almost six decades, three generations of the Kim family have led North Korea backward, by propagating a myth of danger from its neighbours and the world. The people have paid a heavy price for the regressive policies of these rulers, though they are not in a position to admit it due to the culture of sycophancy and fear that exists in the state. While other countries marched forward in every sphere of human development, Pyongyang got stuck in the past. Its economy is in tatters, poverty and unemployment are very high, there is nothing that can be called development in the state. What the leadership of the country has been boasting of, its advances in the nuclear field, which has has only helped to isolate the state and invite sanctions, is of no use to North Koreans

North Korea’s neighbours and the international community are now watching keenly and even nervously as the reclusive state goes through momentious changes. As the national grieving continues over the death of Kim Jong-il, the entire country is brimming with praise for his son, who is looked upon with hope. Kim Jong-un must seize this opportunity and take the country forward by repairing relations with its estranged neighbours and pursuing policies that will bring development to the country.

What makes us optimistic are two factors: that Kim Jong-un is very young, in his late twenties, and that he is educated in Switzerland. Having seen the world, he must have realised where North Korea stands today and what has gone wrong.

At the same time, change will not be easy and will not come soon. The new leader will be surrounded by the same officials and the army which had worked with his father and it’s unlikely that this powerful lobby will want a radical change. But time is on Kim Jong-un’s side and he needs to work slowly, but steadily.

There are fears that the new ruler is too young and inexperienced and therefore could find himself in the middle of a power struggle with the more entrenched sections in the military and government. But the history of North Korea tells us that Kim Jong-un is unlikely to lose power in such a struggle. The massive outpouring of grief at Kim Jong-il’s death is enough proof that only the Kim family can rule North Korea.