The influx of outside information and regime stability in North Korea

This paper investigates the following question: Does the influx of outside information threaten the social control and regime stability of North Korea? After the opening of China's economy in the 1980s, information of South Korea and Western world began to reach North Koreans through the border between China and North Korea. Despite the public perception that North Korea is a closed society, it has become increasingly exposed to outside information. This influx of outside information poses new challenge to the social control system of North Korea. Many North Koreans have learned of South Korean economic prosperity thanks to smuggled South Korean tunable radios and DVDs of movies and television shows.;However, North Korea's total regulation on the flow of information has successfully prevented the dissemination of discontent. Two case studies on the Cuba and East Germany show that information influx alone cannot produce the process of democratization or regime change of authoritarian regimes. Cuban regime has successfully eliminated political competition and made civil society weak and ineffective. On the contrary, East Germany failed to maintain information monopoly, and it failed to deter the civic organization's activities.;Current social and political situation of North Korea is similar to that of Cuba rather than East Germany. North Korea does not have institutions that can convert mass grievance into political protests. Therefore, although the influx of outside information weaken the social control of North Korea, it does not appear to be a threat to North Korean regime due to the absence of democratizing agent such as civil society. In addition, along with the strict social control system, North Korea's strong ideological indoctrination has also influenced the North Koreans' acceptance of Kim Jong-Il's legitimacy.;However, information influx happening in North Korea seems to be not just transitional. Advances in information technology would make it difficult for Kim Jong-Il regime to seal off its people from outside information in the long term. Therefore, to change the totalitarian North Korean regime, and to ensure East Asia's peaceful stability, the United States and South Korea should collaborate to induce the North Korea's change.