North Korea
Congrats! You are now being forced into our army!
By: Ava Baber
Basic facts
Population: 24,283,205
Language: Korean
Capital: Pyongyang
Supreme Leader: Kim Jong Un
Premier: Pak Pong Ju
Government: Communist
Sports and Entertainment
Arirang, football, domestic football, football for women, ice hockey, golf, basketball, gymnastics, tae kwon do and professional wrestling.
Yet the most favorable ones are soccer (football) and gymnastics.
Soccer:
The men's soccer team is called Chollima, named after a pegasus from Chinese legends. They even qualified for the World Cup but lost 3-0. It is mostly liked due to how well they do at games.
Gymnastics:
Gymnastics is popular because at Arirang mass games, thousands of dancers and gymnasts come together and perform very complex dances. A 150,000-seat stadium is full and watching them all. dancers practice for months to finally perfect their dance routines.
Tae-kwon-do:
North Korea was one of the first countries to use martial arts-tae kwon do. Tae kwon do is a series of kicks and jumps. The sport is used for self-defense and getting exercise.
Media:
All media-type of entertainment is basically blocked. to go more into detail, television shows, books, music, movies, etc from other countries (even South Korea) are Banned! So the only entertainment is made in their country.
Government
North Korea's government is a Communist state under totalitarian dictatorship. The people still have political and civil rights but the government still tells them what to do.
Foreign Policy Trends:
Isolationist- Only maintaining "friendships" with China, Russia, and Pakistan. No significant relations with Japan, United States, or South Korea (enemies).
Rights:
The country's rights are limited, society doesn't have freedom of speech. Media is controlled by the government. An estimated 150,000-200,000 people are put into prison camps because they didn't follow the government's guidelines. These people are forced into labor, physically abused and killed.
Culture
Education is important, you need 12 years of schooling from ages 5-17. Out of both male and female 100% of people can read and write. Males and females are treated the same educationally but gender equality any other way isn't good.
Gender Equality:
Females are expected to do all things associated with the house, Males aren't even allowed to. Men have to do all of the hard work outside of the house. Women aren't even allowed to know about what's going on out there, the men can't teach them that. If the family is starving, this is considered a divorce case for the parents. Work is more important than family.
Clothing:
They have also adapted t-shirts and jeans, they often wear the Cheogori and Paji- worn by both men and women before the t-shirt and jeans came around. Also worn at fancy festivals throughout the year.
Food:
Korean cuisines are mainly based on rice, vegetables and meats. Kim Chi- usually made of cabbage or cucumbers soaked in ginger, garlic, and Chile brine.
Holidays:
The day of the sun is April 15 and celebrates the ruler's birthday. Also the New year, constitution day (December 27) and many other festivals throughout the year. April 25, Korean people's army foundation day, is a "big" deal because of how large and powerful the army is. There are no public holidays like Christmas or Easter.
Bibliography
"Subscriber Area Only." CultureGrams Online Database: Subscriber Area Only. Web. 10 May 2016.
Soccer. Digital image. Vir.com. Web. 16 May 2016.
Sea of Japan. Digital image. Fegi.ru. Web. 16 May 2016.
River. Digital image. Fegi.ru. Web. 16 May 2016.
"North Korea." Central Intelligence Agency. Central Intelligence Agency. Web. 06 May 2016.
Map of North Korea. Digital image. World Atlas. Web. 16 May 2016.