I was in North Korea and they were watching me – A Hungarian journalist in Pyongyang

GLOBS Magazine – A country that suddenly turned from the world’s most hated country to the symbol of possible peace and renewal. We have been organizing a journey for nearly a year, in order to get into the most isolated and mysterious country in the contemporary world. In March 2017, we requested permission from North Korea’s Embassy in Vienna. And after waiting for months, the response came: I will be able to get a visa in April 2018 if I join the members of the Baptist Charity Service.

I can honestly say that there are very mixed feelings in a reporter when he or she travels to North Korea. In the weeks before the journey, I’ve read almost every article about the Korean peninsula. This is why I can say that I was really afraid when I left Budapest and set off to Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. It is well known that an American student has been sentenced to 15 years of prison, because he raised the picture of the supreme leader from the wall. I have certainly promised to myself that I will comply with every courtesy rule in North Korea, if possible. This is exactly the country where you do not want to get into conflict with the authorities. North Korea is working under authoritarian cult and one party system. Therefore, the country is of also still very militaristic nature. Currently, there are 1.2 million people serving in the North Korean army. Compared to this, the size of the Hungarian Defense Forces makes up only 2% of theirs in number of soldiers. Unofficially, the North Korean secret service forces – about one million people – organizes the make the population report on each other on a daily basis. Considering this, I decided to be very careful, constantly keeping the local rules in mind, during the one-week-long journey.

To travel to Pyongyang by plane, you can do it via Beijing. From Budapest, the travel takes about a day to get there.

In the capital of China, there was an old Tupolev type of plane waiting for us. The flight which took us to North Korea was run by the Air Koryon airline. The flight attendants were nice, but they warned us several times that it was forbidden to take photos and film on board or out of the window. We also got some food. Burgers and grape juice were served to the passengers. This is funny in itself, as the American style sandwich does not really fit in the North Korean customs.

After two hours of easy flight, we landed at Pyongyang Airport. Grumpy and rigorous soldiers in green uniforms brought us to several X-ray and screening machines.

Everything was scanned. They wanted to find out what we will bring into the country. In fact, even our phones were taken away, and the border guard was looking at our photos. As it turned out later, they were looking for South Korean propaganda material and pornography. The possession of these would have meant a couple of years in prison or, in the worst case, years of forced labor. Fortunately, there was no such thing on my phone. At the airport, Mr. Lee and Mr. Pek were waiting for us. They were our guides during the time we spent in the country. According to the official explanation, their task was to keep us safe and help with the interpretation. In reality, they were watching us and listening to our conversations. Although it is true that they have helped many times to organize the programs.

Foreigners coming to North Korea are definitely bound to participate in the so-called “must-see” cultural programs. Thanks to our guides, we participated such programs in the next few days. We went to see “voluntarily” the embalmed corpses of two former Supreme Leaders, Ki Mir Sen and Kim Jong Il. Photography and filming was forbidden. The Supreme Leaders lie in a glass coffin which were illuminated from above with red light. The coffin is set in a huge gray marble hall. After a one-hour-long procedure, you can get to the Supreme Leaders on moving sidewalks painted in red. Meanwhile, one can see thousands of paintings representing the successful meetings and programs of the leaders in the past few decades, while propaganda songs are audible in the background. In a rough description, the experience starts with the smiling pioneers, then continues with the examination of the excellent harvest and different military exercises, and ends with the portraits of the Supreme Leaders pointing at different directions.

After visiting the memorial, we headed to the main square in Pyongyang. It was warmly recommended to place a bunch of flowers on the 35-meter-tall bronze statutes of the two Supreme Leaders, Ki Mir Sen and Kim Jong Il. Flower placement was not mandatory, but it was highly recommended. However, we had to bow at the statues, just like it was obligatory to do so at the glass coffins of the Supreme Leaders. There were no exceptions. Everyone bowed in accordance with his/her own temperament. Foreigners were allowed to nod only, as a sign of respect towards the Supreme Leaders. However, the locals bow deeply and humbly at different memorial places.

In North Korea, nobody will ever forget that it is easy to get imprisoned in a labor camp if somebody does or says something wrong. It could also mean years of forced labor.

I received the visa only on the condition that I travel together with the Baptist Charity Service delegation. For many years, we have known each other with Sándor Szenczy, Head of the Charity Service, and Béla Szilágyi, vice-president of the organization. We have found ourselves in a special situation in the middle of our journey. At the request of Sándor Szenczy, our hosts took us to the only Protestant Church in Pyongyang, on the following day. We were all surprised, but they let Sándor to preach, although the Korean interpreter was apparently very much raised in an atheist environment. He clearly had some difficulties with the translation of the words “God, Bible, Pray”.