North Korea\'s caste system; Songbun

Assess the significance and evolvement of the harsh implementation of North Korea's caste system; 'Songbun', on its people and the way in which it's oppressive policies nourish the Kim regime.
'Songbun' is North Koreas own unique caste system implemented under the Kim regime in which is used to categorise each individual based on their socio-political hereditary background. Implementation of the system began during the establishment of the Kim regime under Kim Il-sung's ruling (the first of the Kim's) in 1948, after the division of the region in 1945 due to Japanese control. 'Songbun' was embarked upon every family, categorising individuals based on their descendant's political history, specifically revolutionary heritage, thus in doing so cunningly controlling political threats and ensuring safety of the Kim regime. This system, while controlling what the Kim's deem as '"political threats", is of great significance to a North Korean's life, ultimately being the single most important factor in determining the restrictions or limitations in which is held upon them. In this way, it is of paramount importance to proclaim that the 'Songbun' system engages in discriminatory behaviour and humanitarian abuses breaching ethical conduct of the United Nations declaration of human rights; "every individual is entitled to rights without distinction of race, social origin, or birth" as declared in Robert Collins investigation of the 'Songbun' system.
'Songbun' consists of three dominant classes; 'Core' (28% of the population), being the most desirable class, 'Wavering' (45%) and the lowest class; 'Hostile' (27%). 'Songbun' is significant to all individuals as it is the assignment of either of these classes in which can dictate every aspect of a North Korean's life in being problematic to some. 'Songbun' plays the role in determining how "worthy" you are based on the actions of your descendants. Prerequisites such as employment, food, education, housing, religion, healthcare, family and marriage are accountable upon your 'Songbun'.
The elites and most desirable are the makeup of the core class in which all an individuals are descendants of 'war heroes' who died working and fighting for the North and are characterised as "red to the core" exemplifying one's communist roots in which is in favour of the Kim regime and connotes prosperous behaviour. Due to this extremely low risk of being a threat to the Kim regime as proven by their generational family line, life for the core is of a high standard. The wavering class (the middle class) are not mistreated drastically; however they still do not possess privileges of the elite. North Korean's with this 'Songbun' are usually associated with descendants from the South, Japan or China and due to this are deemed as suspicious and require surveillance. The hostile class are those deemed as a threat to the Kim regime as people from this caste's descendants are either of anti-revolutionary background, capitalists, religious, or have relation to the South in during the Korean War. Frequent surveillance is needed of this class and opportunity is limited, as well as being classified as "unredeemable" establishing that it doesn't matter how much loyalty an individual may profess to the Kim's, they will never be considered due to their ancestors, ultimately exemplifying discrimination and inequality.
The significance of 'Songbun' on North Koreans is that it marginalises those politically undesirable through all aspects of life while elite supremacy thrives politically bettering the regime. Significance of employment, food, housing, healthcare, family and marriage in a North Korean's life is determined by their given caste, in which their 'Songbun' will either provide the individual with privileges or deprivation to opportunities. As for employment it is systematically most desirable to work for influential agencies such as the party, police or international security system, however due to ones 'Songbun' only the core class is accessible to this avenue thus improving their quality of life drastically in comparison to the wavering and hostile. Due to having an accredited occupation, they are deemed as supreme and therefore will receive more and a higher quality of food to feed their families, education across the generational line, dwellings in which are assigned to them and healthcare having their province contain hospitals. However, for those with lesser 'Songbun' predominantly the hostile class, such avenues are all an illusion as employment available for them is labour work due to the resentment of the Kim's to dare putting such "political threats" in a position of influence. Respectively, this may become feudal thus impacting negatively on other aspects of life such as the lack of food, limited education opportunities, a lower standard of housing usually as they are assigned a small dwelling and may have to share their whole community, and absolutely no access to healthcare. These poor conditions making the hostile and wavering food deprived and suffering from mal-nutrition while the core hold enough prosperity to boost poverty levels around the whole entire country.
The Kim Regime's 'Songbun' is also of high significance to individuals as it has divided the peninsula not only socially; spiralling extreme measures of prejudice but also physically. North Korea due to the elitism and with that ethnocentrism, has divided the peninsula holding captive those of in the hostile caste to be banned and abolished from capital; Pyongyang in which home only to the core, and forcibly locating them into agricultural mountainous environments of North Koreas north east where their pre-determined occupations are of convenience to the regime making them farmers, or in any position of manual work. Ethnocentrism and prejudice is also evident in marriage, being of upmost importance to an individual as it can have effect on not only you, but your whole family and family line to come. North Koreans are prompted to marry within their own 'Songbun' class, as this will leave no resentment on either individual, however in the case of a marriage between two different classes, the person with the lower 'Songbun' will ultimately outweigh the higher 'Songbun' and so your 'Songbun' will decrease as by immediately also affecting your whole family even if they have higher 'Songbun'.
While this system still exists now endured by current successor; Grandson Kim Jong-un, research proves to show that 'Songbun' is somewhat evolving. 'Songbun' since its establishment in the mid 1900's has held a toll on the hostile class with its deprivation of necessities. The hostile class while being most impacted upon negatively have established a secretive "Black market", as a result of the restriction and deprivation, 'Songbun' has caused them to sell goods such as food and medicine, ultimately creating their own illegitimate society "re-inventing capitalism"in order for survival. 'Songbun' by the hostile class has minutely evolved lessening significance as they would rather "become a smuggler or a merchant, whose income far exceeds that of a petty bureaucrat." As well as evolvement suggested by an escapee professing; "Under Kim Il-sung, 'Songbun' was very important, it decided everything. Under Kim Jong-Il things are different- your family background still matters, but money nowadays is more important than social background". However, it is evident that behind this secret society such strict extremes are still held upon this class and the wavering as implemented by 'Songbun'.
'Songbun' nourishes the Kim regime through its many clever ways; through the usage of categorisation to isolate the Hostile and wavering classes from the elite to prevent pollution of thoughts and egalitarian or anti-revolutionary influence on this class. As well as by keeping everyone on edge making the population fearful and submissive as by the physical and social consequences of having a lower 'Songbun' ultimately causing all to strive to be regime loyal bureaucrats. And the "three generations policy" as by which the Kim regime has defeated Marxism, penalising not only an individual, but three generations of the family line as for one's disobliging with the Kim regime, risking the lives and futures of those most dearly to you and bringing shame to the family. Also by which makes Marxism the least effective in trying to gain an uprising as few to little would risk rebelling with so much at stake.
With this objective they hold, 'Songbun' is just another strategic approach in ensuring the Kim's survival through their oppressive tactics by using these drastic measures as implemented through 'Songbun' and how it affects the classes opposed as a threat to the regime, to deem powerful and potentially less-threatened therefore to further prolong the Kim dynasty ruling.




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