All language subtitles for Inside.North.Korea.The.Next.Leader.2020e

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NARRATOR:
This small nation of 25 million

has waltzed on the world stage
for over 70 years.

Despite all odds.

♪♪

The key to North Korea's
survival is totalitarian control

and a hereditary bloodline
that dictates the next leader.

♪♪

♪♪

FIFIELD: North Korea has defied
all expectations

and predictions for decades.

Their system is one
that you know, by rights,

should have collapsed decades ago,

It survived the end
of the Soviet Union

and the move of China
into becoming a capitalist powerhouse.

There was a huge famine that
was debilitating in North Korea.

♪♪

In one of the few remaining

Communist and military dictatorships
in the world,

there are three constants --

A Kim has always ruled.

Anyone questioning their rule
is swiftly killed

or sent to hard labor.

And any influence or knowledge
of the outside world

is prohibited.

♪♪

♪♪

LEE: We call North Korea
a communist country,

they call it a socialist country.

But I really see it as
an absolute monarchy

and a royal dynasty of sorts,

with the Kim family as --
as the royal family.

♪♪

The very first Kim to rule,
Kim Il-sung,

took a page
from the Soviet Union's playbook

and began to create
his own Socialist paradise.

♪♪

♪♪

Kim Il-sung was installed as
the president

of this newly formed state
of North Korea in 1948,

and he was supposed to be a kind
of lackey for Joseph Stalin

there in North Korea,
but he very quickly set about

developing a cult of personality
around him

that was independent
of the Soviet system,

in a way that worried
even the Soviets in the 1960s.

They went well beyond
anything that even Stalin did.

But they also borrowed
very heavily

from other traditions in the region,

so they borrowed
Confucian traditions from China

that had prized hierarchy
and maleness seniority there.

They also took some parts
of the Choson dynasty

that had been
the last kind of imperial system

on the Korean Peninsula before them.

They also borrowed quite
heavily from Christianity.

♪♪

So he kind of picked and chose
from all sorts of traditions

to create a whole new kind of
cult of personality

that he thought could kind of
gain a following in that area.

♪♪

Kim Il-sung, the founder of the country,

was essentially treated,
seen, and continues to be seen

as a semi-god, if not god.

This all falls within
the Kim Il-sung-ism.

It's essentially a religion.

So people pray to him, they thank him.

You know, he is -- he is their god.

♪♪

And according to the state ideology
or the myth, the belief,

this bloodline
comes from the Paektu bloodline.

♪♪

It's an origin story for the ages.

They claim the Kim bloodline
emerges from a holy mountain

on the Chinese border,
Mount Paektu...

♪♪

...starting with Kim Il-sung,
then his son, Kim Jong-il,

and now grandson Kim Jong-un,

all claiming the divine right
to leadership.

♪♪

This bloodline is extremely important.

That's how they have
the legitimacy to rule,

mandate to rule.

I don't think anybody else
from outside of this bloodline

could truly rule North Korea

and have legitimacy
in the eyes of the public.

♪♪

Kim Il-sung built a cult of personality

with a propaganda machine that
saturated the entire society.

♪♪

♪♪

BAEK:
That's the case today as well.

Every piece of information
that's produced within North Korea

is controlled by the state.

♪♪

(speaking Korean)

(speaking Korean)

♪♪

Socialist revolution,
Kim family, Paektu bloodline,

keep the Korean race pure,

don't use any words

that are not part of
a pure Korean language.

♪♪

There's a North Korean calendar system
where the Year One,

Juche Year One, starts in 1912,

which is the birth year of Kim Il-sung.

The state's propaganda permeated
throughout the society.

♪♪

FIFIELD: In the 1970s when Kim Il-sung
started to think about

who was going to
take over the system from him,

they actually changed
the North Korean constitution

to say that the leadership
should be from generation to generation

and really laying the groundwork
for Kim Il-sung's son to take over.

But they spent 25 years

preparing Kim Jong-il
to succeed his father

but also preparing
the North Korean population

and especially the regime leaders
for this idea

that the second-generation Kim
would be the successor.

(speaking Korean)

(crowd cheering)

We have to recognize that
in North Korea

there's only been two successions --

from the founder Kim Il-sung
to his son Kim Jong-il in 1994...

♪♪

...and then when Kim Jong-il
passed away in 2011,

there was another succession.

Kim Jong-un took power at 28.

♪♪

At such a young age, the line
of succession is far less secure

should something happen to him.

The problem is that Kim Jong-un
does not have a male heir

that is old enough
to assume leadership.

♪♪

An unclear succession plan
leaves the Kim family and North Korea

vulnerable to potential instability,

a risk that got the world's attention
when Kim was a no-show

to commemorate his grandfather's birth
on April 15, 2020.

It's really treated like
perhaps we think of it

as Christmas or New Year's.

It's really the biggest holiday
of the year.

And for every April 15,
Kim Jong-un has gone

and laid a wreath at the mausoleum

where his grandfather lies in state.

And he didn't do that this year.

♪♪

His absence, compounded by the fact

that he was not seen in public
for another two weeks,

ignited a firestorm of press.

TERRY: There was this one
North Korea-related news website

in South Korea that reported
that Kim was missing --

not necessarily he's dead,

but something was wrong
with his health.

And then I think the next thing
we saw was Jim Sciutto of CNN

citing a source in the U.S.,
in the U.S. government.

U.S. official with direct knowledge
tells me,

that the U.S. is now
monitoring intelligence

that the health of the North Korean leader
Kim Jong-un is in grave danger.

He had a surgery,
that the aftermath of that surgery

there were complications,
and his health is now in grave danger.

When it comes to the health
of the leader of North Korea,

it is a very small circle of
people who would be in the know

and be able to reveal
that information.

♪♪

FIFIELD: He was either fine,
recuperating, or dead.

And I think the reason
that these rumors gained traction

was because it seemed believable
that he would have health problems.

When you look at him,
he is 36 years old.

He is clearly in very bad shape
for such a young man.

South Korean doctors who have
analyzed his appearance

and his breathing and things have said

that he appears to have
a body mass index of about 45,

which would make him morbidly obese.

♪♪

Kim Jong-un finally did appear
at a photo op on May 1st,

putting the rumors to rest.

♪♪

But the seeds of doubt remained.

Who would carry on the family line
and be the next leader?

♪♪

♪♪

With a regime that controls
nearly every aspect

of civilian, government,
and military life

with precision and force,

it became apparent that
there was no succession plan.

♪♪

So that would open up
just all kinds of possibilities.

What if there is elite in-fighting
or struggle

or factional struggle?

So I think it does -- you know,
the succession question

leads to potential instability,
regime instability in North Korea.

♪♪

The Kim family tree,
or the Paektu bloodline,

is fraught with complications.

There are four generations,
with multiple contenders,

each one eligible
to ascend the throne.

So there's a story that
before Kim Jong-il passed away,

he was talking to a Russian diplomat

and he pointed out
that two of his children

seemed to have the knack and interest
for political affairs

and it was Kim Jong-un
and Kim Yo-jong, the sister.

♪♪

She has all the incentive to try to prove
that she is a strong leader

as a young --
younger sister of the leader,

but also as a woman.

♪♪

(crowd cheering)

FIFIELD: Kim Jong-un has supreme
confidence in his sister, Kim Yo-jong.

She is the person
he trusts most of all

because she has that
same interest in this system

continuing for decades to come.

♪♪

Early on, Kim Yo-jong was appointed

an alternate member of the Politburo,

only the second woman
to receive that title.

The first, her aunt, Kim Kyong-hui.

♪♪

AUM: Kim Yo-jong was also
assuming greater positions

in a variety of agencies

within the North Korean government,
particularly the most important one,

so the Propaganda and Agitation Department

that builds up the cult
and narrative around Kim Jong-il

but also now Kim Jong-un.

And even now she has taken
the leadership

of all inter-Korean
governmental affairs.

♪♪

So when the North Korean delegation
went to Seoul

for the PyeongChang Olympics in 2018,

it was clear that she was, in effect,
the head of the delegation

and is now leading
all inter-Korean relations.

♪♪

The 2018 Olympics was like
a coming-out party for the young sister.

TERRY: The South Korean public
and media went mad.

This was the first time
really seeing her

and someone from the regime.

They were scrutinizing her looks,

they liked the way
she held up her chin.

They thought she looked
somewhat like a royalty,

a little bit proud.

They liked how she was wearing
a simple ponytail, to her makeup.

Everything about her
was scrutinized in South Korea,

and she was quite popular.

They thought she had the right image.

So she played a very important role

in softening up the image
for her country,

for her brother, for herself.

♪♪

LEE: It was an interesting opportunity
for us to see what she was like.

Until then, to be honest,
I had seen her --

she really was on the periphery,
darting around behind the scenes.

♪♪

And so it was interesting
to see her step into that role

and play more of
a diplomatic role as envoy

on behalf of her brother.

♪♪

Kim Yo-jong was seen
by her brother's side during his summits

with South Korean President Moon Jae-in

and with President Trump
in Singapore and Hanoi.

The truly amazing thing about
the brief period of diplomacy

that we saw in 2018 was
the willingness of both Kim Yo-jong

and Kim Jong-un to be portrayed live

and to step out of their
comfortable protected cocoon

and to step
into the rest of the world,

the outside world
where anything could happen.

So this is a very clear departure
from his father,

from their father,
who was notoriously shy

of any kind of public appearance
that wasn't staged.

♪♪

Instead they're taking a page

from their grandfather
Kim Il-sung's playbook,

carefully controlling the message.

♪♪

Following the Korean War,

he established
state-sponsored messaging

designed to secure his own power
through a campaign of fear.

♪♪

The propagandist script
was a simple lie --

"Imperialist Americans" invaded once
and will do it again,

and only he can protect the country.

♪♪

North Korea has very strong concerns
about a hostile United States.

For example, they know that
President Eisenhower

was contemplating the use
of atomic weapons in North Korea

if China and North Korea
were to reinvade after the armistice.

North Korea was also very devastated

by the 600,000 tons of bombs

that the U.S. dropped in the North Korea
during the Korean War

that basically left
no building standing

and turned North Korea into a desert.

So from that experience,

I think that really got
into North Korea's psyche,

and that's probably one
of the central premises

of how they think about
their security going forward.

♪♪

Decades of fear has fueled
the development

of the fourth-largest military
in the world,

including a nuclear arsenal

and ICBMs capable of reaching
the continental United States.

♪♪

♪♪

And at the helm of it all
is the Kim family dynasty.

♪♪

(crowd cheering)

♪♪

By 1980, Kim Jong-il
was being groomed as successor.

As head of propaganda, he used
the office to write himself

into the origin story
alongside his father.

♪♪

FIFIELD: The propaganda came to say
that Kim Jong-il,

who was actually born
in a logging camp

in the Siberian part
of the Soviet Union,

they said that he was born
on Mount Paektu in a wooden hut

and a bright star shone
in the sky that night,

which would be very familiar
to anybody

who had been raised
in the Christian tradition,

which Kim Il-sung actually had been.

Upon the sudden death
of the founding Kim in 1994,

while the country mourned,

Kim Jong-il assumed power
without missing a beat.

He ruled with the same iron fist.

While the people suffered and starved,

he carried on the propaganda myth
of the strongman for all the world.

♪♪

Then, over a decade into his reign,

he mysteriously disappears
from public view.

♪♪

♪♪

LEE:
On September 9, 2008,

we were fully expecting
Kim Jong-il to appear

and wave to the crowds
at the 60th anniversary

of the founding of North Korea,
major milestone anniversary.

So in Korean culture,
we call any 60th birthday the Hwangap,

so it's a big deal.

♪♪

We fully expected him
to be there waving

from the viewing platform.

And I still remember, I was watching
a feed of North Korean state TV,

live feed, and the camera
panned to the viewing platform,

and he wasn't there.

♪♪

He had suffered a stroke,
was perhaps in a coma,

and we wouldn't know for weeks.

And so that goes to show
how hard it is

to get any information
about North Korea.

♪♪

The whole regime realized they needed to
turbocharge the succession plan.

So from then on, we saw Kim Jong-un,

the third son of Kim Jong-il,

being rolled out as the natural
heir apparent to this dynasty.

♪♪

And the way they did this

was really
by emphasizing the bloodline.

So they started really hammering
this line that Kim Jong-un

had this Paektu blood
flowing through his veins

and that he was uniquely qualified

to be able to lead
the North Korean regime.

♪♪

And so this is how Kim Jong-un today
claims legitimacy to lead.

This is the reason why Kim Jong-un
ride those white horses on Mount Paektu.

He wants to remind everybody
that he has this claim

that very, very few other people do.

♪♪

♪♪

(crowd screaming and crying)

The propaganda paid off.

At the young age of 28,

Kim Jong-un became the next leader of
North Korea after his father died.

♪♪

But the fact remained --

He had very little experience,
and that made him vulnerable.

♪♪

In a military dictatorship,

the person who controls the money
and the weapons is the leader.

♪♪

Military credibility is considered
essential for that role.

♪♪

TERRY: Kim Jong-un himself,
who had no military experience,

they had to sort of manufacture things

to give him
that kind of military experience.

So in 2010, when the North Koreans
sank a South Korean corvette, Cheonan,

killing 46 South Korean sailors,

that was supposedly done
under Kim Jong-un's name,

that was under his direction,

to give him sort of credibility
with the elites and the public.

♪♪

To add to his legitimacy,
an aunt, Kim Kyong-hui,

and her husband, Jang Song-thaek,

acted as unofficial regents
to the young Kim.

Jang brought in billions
to the regime

by setting up markets abroad,
mostly in China.

The aunt was an influential

and trusted advisor
behind the scenes.

Kim Jong-un's father,
Kim Jong-il, relied on his sister

as a support network,
as someone who's loyal to Kim Jong-il.

There's not many people
that you can trust in North Korea

if you're the leader of North Korea.

So family members are very
important and Kim Kyong-hui,

Kim Jong-il's sister,

was an important person
that Kim Jong-il trusted,

that he sought advice from,

that -- someone who played
a supportive role for Kim Jong-il.

♪♪

FIFIELD: There was a very strong precedent
for a sister as a supporter.

And in fact we saw way back,
the aunt and the sister,

so Kim Kyong-hui and Kim Yo-jong,
were out riding horses together

It looked the aunt was training the sister

as much as she was training Kim Jong-un
to take over this role.

♪♪

TERRY:
Kim Yo-jong is a confidante,

the one person that Kim Jong-un
absolutely trusts in North Korea.

As much confidence Kim Jong-un
seemingly has in his sister,

there's one big thing keeping her
from becoming the next leader

if her brother dies unexpectedly.

♪♪

FIFIELD: North Korea is
an extremely patriarchal system.

This regime has always been run by men,
and particularly old men,

so it's really impossible to think
that a young woman could take over,

that Kim Yo-jong could be
the next successor of North Korea.

But having said that,
it's also impossible to think

that she wouldn't take over

because there just really
is nobody else in the family

who has any kind of public profile,

any kind of prominent role
in the regime,

and who would be able to step
into that top leadership role

in the way that she could.

♪♪

TERRY: I truly believe this
Paektu bloodline, which is so important,

trumps this patriarchal society.

So I understand
this patriarchy is important,

it's a male-dominated society,
and there's no doubt about that.

But what's more important to rule?

What do you need
to have to rule North Korea?

You need the bloodline.

♪♪

♪♪

In the spring of 2020,

Kim Jong-un made a point
of showing the world

that he was alive and well

after his brief disappearance
from the public eye.

Still the world speculated --
Who could be the next successor?

♪♪

And then his sister made
an unprecedented show of force.

A statement from Kim Yo Jong,
First Vice Department Director

of the Central Committee
of the Workers' Party of Korea.

♪♪

She threatened to end
the 2018 inter-Korean treaty

if the South did not stop
activist defectors

sending anti-regime messages
into the North.

(speaking Korean)

(applause)

Kim Yo-jong said some very harsh

and disparaging things
about the Moon administration.

"...it is no longer possible to discuss
North-South relations with

such a servile, submissive partner who is
steeped deeply in flunkeyism

and now even dashes towards
disgrace and self ruin."

AUM: And then also did things
like blowing up

the inter-Korean liaison office...

...cutting off
the communication channels.

It's also very telling that
she basically said

that she is giving
the North Korean military permission

to come up with next steps for,

you know, being aggressive
against South Korea.

They deliberated a phased
anti-enemy plan

to make sure those traitors and
human scum pay for their crimes...

AUM:
So I think that was very important

because publicly she is showing
that she has the power

to instruct the North Korean military
to devise and implement next steps.

They have connived with human scum
in actions against our republic,

driving inter-Korean relations
to a catastrophic end point.

♪♪

That is a part of Kim Yo-jong
being groomed to exert control

over the North Korean military

if there were a problem
with Kim Jong-un.

♪♪

The Moon administration acquiesced

and placed restrictions
on activist defectors.

TERRY: Nothing that's coming out
of North Korea is sort of haphazard.

They have thought this through.

I think that Kim Jong-un
has in his mind

grooming his sister,
and this is sort of the start.

She needs to show that's she'S tough,
she has what it takes,

that she can be tough
against the South Koreans,

she can be tough against Americans.

So I think more provocations
will come out of North Korea

and it will have
Kim Yo-jong's name on it.

But she is walking a tightrope,

because even trusted family members

can get on the wrong side
of the regime.

(cheers and applause)

When Kim Jong-un took power,
he saw threats everywhere.

There were hundreds of purges
and executions

of anyone Kim saw as a threat,

mostly old-guard loyalists
to his father.

♪♪

One year into his reign,
he had his own uncle,

Jang Song-thaek,
killed for amassing too much power

within the system.

♪♪

FIFIELD: He was taken out --

There were bleachers set up

so that regime officials
could watch as he was shot

I believe with an antiaircraft gun
in front of this audience

to send a powerful
deterrent message

to anybody who might think about,
you know, rivaling Kim Jong-un

for the leadership.

In Kim Jong-un's mind,
his older half-brother, Kim Jong-nam,

posed the next threat.

Kim Jong-nam showed
absolutely no desire whatsoever

to take on that leadership role.

He had been critical
of the system.

He had been living outside of
North Korea for about 15 years.

In terms of Kim Jong-un's paranoia

and his desire to kind of
shore up the system

and make sure that his core family
and him in particular

was fully in charge,

this is the reason why he had
his own half-brother,

you know, very brutally assassinated
in full public view

of the security cameras
in Kuala Lumpur Airport.

♪♪

LEE: Both of these were
very strong messages

to members of the Kim family

and members of the elite
that you either play along

and you do what Kim Jong-un says,

or he will make sure
that you pay the price.

And so those were both
incredibly chilling messages

that would not have been lost
among the elites

as well as members of the Kim family.

♪♪

After half-brother Kim Jong-nam
was murdered,

his son, Kim Han-sol,
went into hiding.

♪♪

Despite spending
most of his life abroad,

he still feared for his life.

TERRY: I'm sure Kim Jong-un
is looking for Kim Han-sol

to get him rid of him
and a potential --

any potential future successor.

Kim Han-sol is a lot older
than his own children right now

so if something were to happen
to Kim Jong-un

and if, let's say, China and the U.S.
backed someone like Kim Han-sol,

that could potentially happen.

So I think if I'm Kim Jong-un,

he would be, you know --
Kim Han-sol is in danger.

My father has been killed
a few days ago.

I'm currently with my mother
and my sister.

We hope -- We hope this gets better soon.

It's a real-life Game of Thrones.

♪♪

Next up on the family tree,

the globe-trotting, concertgoing
older brother, Kim Jong-chul.

He's not a credible person
from the elite's perspective,

because you want a strong leader
and he was already considered --

Kim Jong-chul was already considered

to be not a strong leader,
who's uninterested in politics,

who's a music fan, who's too effeminate.

♪♪

With no other male siblings
in the running,

another potential challenger
within the bloodline is the uncle,

Kim Pyong-il.

♪♪

LEE: Kim Pyong-il was a half-brother
of Kim Jong-il.

They had different mothers.

So Kim Pyong-il presents
a very interesting case.

He is a member of the Kim family
who bears the Paektu lineage.

His father is Kim Il-sung,
He looks similar to Kim Il-sung.

♪♪

And I do think Kim Jong-il

saw him as a competitor
for the throne.

♪♪

Kim Jong-il, however,
he won the battle for leadership

and sent Kim Pyong-il overseas
as a diplomat.

And Kim Pyong-il spent decades overseas.

♪♪

In a surprise turn,

Kim Jong-un recently recalled his uncle
to Pyongyang.

No one is sure why.

TERRY: Who knows why Kim Jong-un brought
his uncle back to North Korea.

I think the real reason is to make sure
that Kim Pyong-il does not defect

and that Kim Jong-un
can keep a tab on him.

(crowd cheering)

A clear line to the next leader
remains uncertain.

Such a void could lead to chaos.

♪♪

♪♪

In North Korea,
daily life is influenced

by over 70 years
of Kim family rule.

A new leader outside the Paektu bloodline
is unthinkable.

But when you look at the family tree,
there's no clear choice.

Kim Yo-jong is young and female.

The brother, Kim Jong-chul,
is perceived as weak.

The nephew, Kim Han-sol,
is unknown within North Korea.

The uncle, Kim Pyong-il,
lacks the relationships

within the system to gather power.

♪♪

It's court intrigue.
It's modern-day court intrigue.

One prominent figure
in the North Korean court

not found on the family tree
is Choe Ryong-hae.

He wields great power
and influence in the regime

and should not be overlooked
as a potential successor.

AUM:
He spent some time in the military,

but really he's been a bureaucrat
for the last 30, 40 years.

He's the first vice chair
of the State Affairs Commission

and widely recognized as the number two
in command in North Korea.

♪♪

LEE: Choe Ryong-hae is political royalty
in North Korea.

He comes from the perfect lineage
for a North Korean official.

His father, Choe Hyon,

fought alongside Kim Il-sung
fighting the Japanese,

and so he has what they call
that partisan street cred.

And so he has that

political heritage and ancestry.

He's a trusted friend
of the Kim family.

But he's still an outsider.

♪♪

TERRY: Choe Ryong-hae does not have
Paektu bloodline,

and that's the valuable thing
that Choe Ryong-hae is missing.

That said, I think if anybody
can challenge Kim Yo-jong

becoming the next successor
will be Choe Ryong-hae

because he is the second
most powerful man in North Korea.

There are rumors that his second
son was married to Kim Yo-jong,

so there could be some
interesting connections there

in terms of a future power dynamic.

♪♪

A smart play for the North Koreans
is for Kim Yo-jong to take over,

she has the right bloodline,

and closely aided by someone
like Choe Ryong-hae

who has experience,
who has a patronage network,

who comes from the right family.

And if they could work together,

that would be a smart thing
for the North Koreans.

That would lead to stable transition.

♪♪

Any uncertainty during a time
of transition

could potentially cause
a chaotic period

that would worry South Korea

and not be tolerated
by China or the U.S.

♪♪

AUM: The concern for the U.S. government
is instability.

If you were to have a situation
where Kim Jong-un

passes away suddenly
and there's no clear successor,

then that presents problems.

China's also concerned about instability

along its borders
with North Korea as well.

Their approach to North Korea
is that they want no war,

no instability, and no nuclear weapons,
but in that order.

And so I think they would
also be concerned

about a crisis of succession,

the inability of
the North Korean government

to control its population,
warring factions,

loose nuclear weapons,
a fallout from poor nuclear security,

a famine in the country.

Any of these scenarios could cause
a problem along China's border,

and they would want to
approach that very quickly.

♪♪

And they have good reason
for concern.

The North Korean people
have starved before.

In the 1990s, a financial crisis struck,
massive flooding,

and the loss of their main benefactor,
the Soviet Union,

caused the central distribution system
to collapse.

♪♪

They could no longer provide
for the people.

It is believed that over
a half a million lives were lost

in the famine that followed.

♪♪

The North Korean people realized
that they couldn't rely

on the North Korean government anymore,

they had to basically
rely on themselves.

And so they started
foraging for food,

they started to sell anything
that they could get their hands on,

make stuff
and sell them in the new markets

that were popping up
across the country.

And basically this resulted
in survival entrepreneurialism

on a mass scale.

♪♪

BAEK: Fast-forward to now in 2020,
there are hundreds of massive markets.

Now they are regulating these markets,

they are taxing these markets,
and they are trying to control.

But they're not getting rid of them
because there's no way,

there's no alternative to
provide for all of its citizens.

♪♪

By allowing these markets to exist,

the people rely less
on the Kim family.

But could this shift in power
cause regime collapse,

where the people gain control?

♪♪

Every aspect of North Korean life
is so tightly controlled,

the outside world is not to be known
or seen

by the vast majority of citizens.

But that is slowly changing.

(gas whooshing)

♪♪

Over the last 10, 20 years,

North Korean people have been
getting access to foreign media,

including South Korean
television programs,

Chinese films, e-books, and so on
from the outside world.

Things that are being
smuggled in on USB sticks

and micro SD cards.

Things that North Korean government
doesn't want them to see.

And once the North Korean people
learn things

and know things about the outside world
and their own country

that the North Korean leadership
doesn't want them to know,

they can't unlearn them.

And you know, curiosity is an idea
that can't be killed.

(rooster crows)

♪♪

North Korean people have been able to open
things up from the bottom up gradually,

and one of the most important changes
there, I think, is in information.

And even though there's so much risk
attached to that,

this phenomenon has actually
been spreading and growing.

Where are the USBs?

These are the USBs here

Loads of recent films and
TV shows saved on there

PARK: It makes them question
certain fundamental things

that they've been taught
from an early age.

(up-tempo music playing)

What are they doing?

And this is something
that is irreversible.

♪♪

LEE: The North Korean people
struggle with children

who question things
and young people who are not happy.

MAN: Who can tell me what the term
"market research" means?

So you have to wonder
whether Kim Jong-un

has the kind of loyalty
that his grandfather

could safely rely on
when he was leader.

♪♪

FIFIELD: Until now, the system has been
able to stay intact

using repression, punishing people
in very extreme ways

if they commit political crimes
like questioning the leadership.

North Korea is the most closed
and repressive country in the world,

and 25 million North Korean people

face the most authoritarian government
in the world,

and this situation has been going
for 70 years now.

♪♪

It's absolutely incredible to think
that there are maybe around

100,000 North Korean people
in political prison camps

which are reminiscent
of the Soviet gulags

or some people would say even
the Nazi concentration camps.

♪♪

This is how the North Korean system
has survived.

So far they have been able to
keep it under control,

but every time you take a step away
from this foundation myth,

it becomes that little bit harder
to perpetuate it.

♪♪

BAEK: Eventually we could see
history repeat itself in North Korea

as it did in other parts
of the world, which is,

groups of people who are like-minded

in a shared pursuit
of achieving a better society,

happier society,
a freer society for its people.

(man speaking Korean over loudspeaker)

There is every day
disorganized resistance.

North Korean people resist authority
and the government

in their own way
in their daily life.

(people speaking Korean)

You're not going to be quiet?

You're saying you don't deserve this?
Watch your mouth!

And as that builds,
it maybe creates the seeds

for civil society space,

more cooperation between people,

and just more spread
of subversive ideas

and desires for the future.

(sirens wailing)

You know, human history
teaches us to be humble

about what we think we can know
about how things will play out,

especially in terms
of political developments.

These things inherently surprise us.

Countries are stable
until they're unstable.

♪♪

BAEK: I think we're not going to see
anything similar to a Pyongyang Spring

or a Pyongyang Square anytime soon.

And this is mainly because
the deterrent measures,

the punishment mechanisms,
is just so effective.

North Korea is -- as a dictatorship,
they get a A-plus.

They are an incredibly
effective dictatorship.

No one is immune
from being used by the state,

being exploited by the state,
or being assassinated by the state.

♪♪

FIFIELD: I've asked people
who've escaped from North Korea

about why there is
no kind of people's uprising,

why there is no revolution
in North Korea.

They all point to this --

They say that if you disagree
with the system

you try to escape from it,

you don't try to change it
from within.

For those who opt to escape,

the chosen path
is often through China,

guided by an underground network,

constantly fearing detection,
pushing themselves to exhaustion.

It's an arduous path to freedom.

♪♪

BAEK: I think it's essential to try
to understand

and listen to as many
North Korean defectors as possible,

'cause the regime
and all the heinous, brutal ways

that the regime maintains to keep
the society as it is, is one thing.

But at the complete other end
of the spectrum

of trying to understand North Korea
as a whole

are the people who live it

and the people who overcome
such repressive life.

♪♪

So where is the tipping point
in North Korea?

What is the moment where
the people of North Korea say, you know,

"We've had enough with living
in this system of lies.

We know the outside world
is richer and freer

and we want some of that
for ourselves"?

♪♪

For the Kim family, maintaining control
is a delicate dance.

♪♪

Their dynasty has ruled
for over 70 years...

♪♪

...and the key
to its ongoing survival is succession.

♪♪

I think we have many years before
we'll see that issue come to a head.

Perhaps it will come sooner
than Kim Jong-un would like.

♪♪

But he is banking on the idea
of it being decades

before he hands power
to the next generation.

Captioned by VITAC