North Korea in 1989: Touched by Winds of Change?

Abstract

The Festival The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) missed the excitement of the 1988 Summer Olympic Games in Seoul, but its day in the sun came 10 months later when Pyongyang hosted the thirteenth World Festival of Youth and Students (WFYS), a gathering of people from 180 nations. On July 1 the grand opening ceremony was held in the newly renamed May Day Stadium under the festival theme of antiimperialism solidarity, peace, and friendship. By all accounts the festival was staged successfully. Pyongyang had been preparing for four years, reportedly spending $4.5 billion on construction of facilities, some of which were originally intended for the Olympic Games. The Koreans reportedly received a grant of $33 million from Moscow to help pay the costs, but on seeing the many imposing buildings and the lavish entertainments staged by North Korea, the Soviets questioned the wisdom of a developing country spending so much money to stage such an exhibition. Moscow's dissatisfaction with lavish spending was not the only criticism directed at the festival. According to an Associated Press dispatch from Pyongyang, the Danish and Finnish delegations embarrassed North Korean authorities during the opening ceremony by unfurling banners that criticized Pyongyang's human rights abuses. And as might be expected, some Western journalists returned to their countries to report on the regimentation they had witnessed in North Korean society. But all in all the festival was impressive in scale and execution. Despite the closed and secret nature of North Korean society, Pyongyang found the means to open its arms to welcome foreign guests. The effects of this opening on local citizens (i.e., those relatively few who were exposed to foreigners) can be