The South Korean bureaucrats who pretend to run North Korea
Not being able to set foot there makes the job a breeze
IN A LEAFY neighbourhood at the foot of Bukhansan mountain in Seoul’s northern suburbs sits a large office building with a stately glass-panelled entrance. Colourful flags flutter in the breeze above the generous but mostly empty car park, which is surrounded by well-tended shrubbery.
This is the office of the Committee for the Five Northern Provinces, South Korea’s vestigial bureaucracy for North Korea, over which the South claims jurisdiction. Five of the flags outside represent the provinces lost in 1948, when the peninsula was formally sundered (contemporary North Korea has nine provinces). There is a governor for each province, as well as mayors for their towns and cities and village officials for smaller settlements.
This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline "Enemies with benefits"
Asia June 8th 2019
- The leader of the Thai junta tortures the rules to remain in power
- Asian countries fear China but many won’t side with America
- Sri Lanka responds to Islamist terrorism by terrorising Muslims
- The South Korean bureaucrats who pretend to run North Korea
- Domestic travellers have revived Bangladesh’s tourism industry
- Vietnam has one of the highest shares of women in work in the world
From the June 8th 2019 edition
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