Received by NSD/FARA Registration Unit 06/18/2021 10:36:11 AM C?KEI

cP 202.464.1982 Q 1800 K Street NW

THEPENIN

The North Korean Wave Was Never a Symbol of Liberalization

Publishedjune 18, 2021 Author: Alexandra Langford Category: North , Inter-Korean

Outside observers sometimes interpret the adoption of South Korean pop culture trends by ’s state-sanctioned outlets as symbols of the regime buckling under the internal demand for change. The implicit hope is that cultural imitation of will lead to ’s liberalization in other areas, particularly the economy and the political structure. People with this outlook may have seen Kim Jong-un’s recent excoriation of K-

Received by NSD/FARA Registration Unit 06/18/2021 10:36:11 AM Received by NSD/FARA Registration Unit 06/18/2021 10:86:11 AM pep as a reversal in the regime's openness to reform. However, North Korea’s increasingly diverse offerings in music, TV programs, cosmetics, and others were never indicators of broader liberalization.

In the digital age, South Korean music and dramas circulate throughout North Korea much more freely than before. USB drives with the latest K-pop albums and Korean TV dramas enter North Korea primarily through the Sino-DPRK border and are sold in North Korea’s (informal street) markets. Spearheading the spread of these illicit materials, the so-called “Jangmadang Generation” - young people who were born in the 1990s - show increasing disaffection with North Korean propaganda. Some inside the country believe that this cohort’s rejection of the status quo threatens the regime’s long-term hold on power.

This may have contributed to Kim Jong-un’s decision to establish the Band in

2012 soon after he became North Korea's leader, in their early years, the women of Moranbong Band wore matching outfits with shorter-than-average skirts, showy jewelry, and noticeable makeup, all of which were uncommon in North Korea at the time. The band members also perform light choreographed dance moves while singing, and those playing instruments are shown to be using foreign name-brand products. While it's not an exact copy of South Korea's vibrant K-pop performances, the similarities of Moranbong Band's earlier performances are noticeable when taking into consideration North Korea's conservative social norms and style of dress.

Moranbong Band’s musical style is influenced by , but its lyrics are overt propaganda that praise the leadership and regime initiatives. This contradiction of using foreign musical styles to spread propaganda hints at the intention of these projects. Instead of showing the country's growing openness to the outside, the new music instead spotlights the regime's principal goal of making its old message more appealing to the population.

To deal with the rising popularity of South Korean dramas, which found a following among both ordinary people and party cadres, the regime has also been producing its own dramas. Compared to Kim Jong-ll’s films that praised the DPRK leadership, dramas under Kim Jong-un are a subtler form of propaganda. They focus on daily life through light rnmanrp «;tnrip«s srhnnl lifp and nprinrk in Knrpan hk+nrv PrnnaoanHa mps^aops in thp^p Received by NSD/FARA Registration Unit 06/18/2021 i():36:l 1 AM RessixsAfey. B.SD/EMA Regjstrstien. I teU,Q

The quality of North Korea's dramas has increased as well, with more appealing outfits and sets, though the production value is not as high as their South Korean counterparts. The subtle propaganda messaging, episodic formats, and the focus on daily life make these dramas more comparable to South Korea’s popular TV dramas, and they illustrate how

North Korea is benchmarking haltyu for its own ends. The popularity of South Korean dramas has also created a market for makeup and fashion styles inside North Korea that the regime is attempting to capture. North Korea began its cosmetics production with the establishment of the Cosmetics Factory in 1949, and some of the state’s main brands currently include Pomhyanggi, KaesongKoryo Insam, and

Unhasu. In recent years, the North has sought to improve the quality of its cosmetic products, and the industry as a whole has received attention from Kimjong-n and Ri Solju who visited factories producing cosmetics in 2018.

Like South Korea's major cosmetic brands, North Korean products come in lines that include toners, lotions, and serums. In at least one instance, the brand Unhasu has used an exact copy of South Korean cosmetic packaging: a cat-shaped powder compact from

Tony Moly. To encourage both domestic and foreign sales, Pomhyanggi cosmetics are available for purchase through several online DPRK intranet retailers, as well as though Chinese online retailer Taobao. Despite these efforts, South Korean products are much higher quality and are still vastly preferred over North Korean cosmetics in Jangmadang markets.

Although it seems that the North Korean regime has in some instances adapted itself to keep up with hallyu trends, these changes are not an indication that the regime is becoming more liberal or is looking to open up to the outside world. Most notably, North Korea has recently adopted harsher punishments for those caught with South Korean media, including labor camp sentences of 15 years. A new law from January 2021 also criminalizes the use of South Korean terms, such as oppa, which has become popular through dramas. Under the January law, the regime threatens those who use South with a fine or imprisonment. Similarly, Moranbong Band was told in February to return to “traditional values’’ in an effort to move away from outside cultural influences, and their outfits have been military-inspired for several years. Furthermore, South Korean products smuggled in from are still illegal.

While North Korea has adopted some South Korean trends in an attempt to extend the rparh rtf thp rpoimp’s nrnnaoanHs it rpmains i inwillino tn pnoacfp in nthpr lihpralmno Received by NSD/FARA Registration Unit 06/18/2021 10:36:11 AM RsesiYs^to' N£M/^]^i§Jf4i9nAM, measures. The state remains hostile to open consumption of South Korean pop culture or any relaxation of social restrictions. Ironically, these will also hamper the regime's ability to produce cultural content that is more appealing to a domestic audience.

Alexandra Langford is a former research intern at the Korea Economic Institute of America

(KEI). All views expressed in this article are entirely the author's own.

Photofrom Wikimedia Commons.

Return to the Peninsula

Received by NSD/FARA Registration Unit 06/18/2021 10:36:11 AM