North Korea

North Korean refugees are speaking up about the sudden death of Kim Jong-il.

Hoping to provide a voice to the voiceless, Liberty in North Korea, a grassroots organization that works to redefine the North Korea crisis and provide emergency relief to refugees, contacted those who recently left the country, asking for their comments on the current situation.

They noted in an email that the North Korean refugees were not necessarily representative of the general population because the majority came from border regions, causing their views to be different from those living in Pyongyang or elsewhere. more >>

Kim Jong-il, the former dictator of North Korea who passed away on Saturday, set himself up to be worshiped as a god among his people – but death still overtook him.

The iron-fist dictator is responsible for widespread humanitarian crisis, including persecution of Christians, who are arrested, sent to prison camps, tortured and sometimes publicly executed. But some Christian leaders say if Kim, in his waning moments of life, put his faith in Jesus Christ, he could have been forgiven for all the evil he had done. So the question remains: Is Kim Jong-Il in hell?

“Kim Jong-il , just like his father Kim Il-sung, was an evil dictator that brought fear and pain to so many people in the North,” Won Jae Yu, pastor of New Mercy Community Church in Hackensack, N.J., told The Christian Post in an email on Monday. more >>

Christian persecution is unlikely to be curbed in North Korea following the death of Kim Jong-il, according to several advocacy organizations close to the situation.  Yet there remains hope that the period of transition could help prepare the communist country for a revival, both politically and spiritually.

As the late dictator’s son, Kim Jong-un, takes control of the isolated country, groups serving persecuted Christians, such as Open Doors USA and Christian Solidarity Worldwide, are at the same time preparing for the dire situation to continue in the communist country and hoping that the anti-Christian climate will change.

Paul Estabrooks, Open Doors' senior communications specialist, told The Christian Post that sources both inside and outside of the country are waiting for the regime’s next move. more >>

The Methodist Church in Britain has issued a special prayer for North Korea after the death of its leader Kim Jong-il.

The reclusive dictator died of a heart attack or stroke on Saturday at the age of 69. The official Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) has called his third son, Kim Jong-un, the “great successor.”

Steve Pearce, World Church Partnership Coordinator for the Methodist Church, said in a statement: "The Methodist Church in Britain offers its prayers and support to its brothers and sisters in the whole of Korea today on the news of the death of Kim Jong-il. more >>

The death of longtime North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il, 69, has the world on-the-edge, wondering how his successor will run the country and how his death will affect countries in Asia. There are not many answers to those questions yet, but responses to the North Korean leader’s death are pouring in.

The foreign ministers of both France and Australia said that the death of Kim Jong-il could serve as a sign of hope in the country that suffers from chronic food shortages, poor infrastructure, and frequent power outages.

“It is at times like this that we cannot afford to have any wrong or ambiguous signaling. This time also presents an important opportunity to the new North Korean leadership to engage fully with the international community,” said Australia’s Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd. more >>

With the death of Kim Jong-il announced by North Korean state media Monday, most commentators expect his third son Kim Jong-un to be appointed as his successor.

Kim Jong-un is the youngest son of the late North Korean leader and of his alleged favorite third wife Ko Yong-hui, who herself passed away in 2004 due to breast cancer. It is believed that he is in his late 20s and was born in 1983 or early in 1984.

He has two older brothers: Kim Jong-nam, who is a half-brother, and Kim Jong-chol, who is a full brother. more >>