Kijŏng-dong is a city that has been commissioned, created, and up-kept for the sole purpose of propaganda. Although Kim Jon-un is not the original founder, he keeps up the appearances and city maintenance left to him by his predecessors (Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il). For a detailed and photographic account of this ridiculous city, see this guy's blog.
It's really a fascinating and informative journey; researching an empty and useless city that is funded with money that could feed the population of NK, which by the way, is a starving country. If you ask me, the finance that goes into the upkeep and maintenance of that city is conspicuously offensive to the poor, displayed in a manor that tries to glorify it's leader but ends up contradicting it's own purposes.
(Photos found here.)
I want to hear more from you Melissa on how this ties into the totalitarian regime. How this is a play right out of their playbook to show signs of power and strength while, as you said, the reality of a starving and fearful population can be found a few kilometers away.
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