North Korea and the Exit from Totalitarianism
By Mark P. Barry
Will Kim Jong Un’s North Korea be reminiscent of the Soviet Union’s early perestroika of 1986? Is there impending economic restructuring in the North that is comparable to what China undertook in 1979? It’s possible that a process may have recently begun whereby North Korea could eventually shift from totalitarianism (or total control of public and private life) to authoritarianism (with minimal pluralism and autonomy in private life), drawing from the recent experiences of China. But in North Korea, structural reforms will not be the only requisite of change. Behind the scenes, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) will also need to negotiate its exit from totalitarianism and seek the support of its neighbors, especially South Korea, Japan, and the United States.
Many Asian affairs analysts are taking the measures adopted by North Korea under its new leader in the past two months seriously. One of the most significant appraisals has been from Andrei Lankov, a noted Russian-born Korea specialist teaching in Seoul. Lankov is a long-time skeptic that North Korea would ever be capable of lasting reforms. However, earlier this month, he surprised his readers by admitting that “[r]ecent news from Pyongyang seemingly indicates that for the first time the start of a reform process is a real possibility.” He outlines minor changes that seem trivial at first but really reveal substantive reforms.
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