Opinion The darkest Shangri-la

The aptly monikered Hermit Kingdom is an endless source of fascination and confusion for the outside world. Tales trickling out from it straddle the line between the ridiculously sublime — consider, for example, the “discovery” of a unicorn lair — and the terrifyingly grim. Most recently, “dear leader” Kim Jong-un is reported to have taken strong exception to a napping official. Defence Minister Hyong Yong-choi was allegedly killed by anti-aircraft fire for falling asleep during a meeting. South Korean intelligence, the main source for news about its secretive neighbour that does not involve Kim performing feats of derring-do, has since walked back its information on the method, and even the fact, of the execution.

The entire incident exemplifies the mystique that surrounds North Korea. It is easy to believe stories of errant officials being punished for a slight, real or imagined, or for threatening the Kims’ stranglehold over the nation, because such things have happened in the past. Grisly methods of execution, such as death by firing squad and flamethrowers, have supposedly been deployed with some regularity by the Kim dynasty in an attempt to consolidate its hold on power. The young Kim, especially, might feel the need to constantly signal to the elites, who are both his closest allies and most credible threats, that he is in charge by effecting a purge every so often.

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But Korea-watchers also acknowledge that South Korea has a history of exaggerating to make its neighbour look bad. Last year, a salacious rumour that Kim had executed his uncle and second-in-command, Jang Song-thaek, by feeding him alive to hungry dogs was debunked — though it was confirmed that Jang had been killed. And then there was the feverish speculation when Kim disappeared from public view for a month. What’s certain is that this cycle of conjecture and gossip is bound to continue so long as North Korea remains an information black hole.