Foreigners in 1984 North Korea were seen as intrinsically dangerous. They knew way too many things which the average North Korean was not supposed to know. In the mid-1980s, when mature Kimilsongism was in its full bloom, North Koreans were supposed to believe that they inhabited a lucky island of prosperity amidst a worldwide sea of poverty, destitution and suffering. Needless to say, the North Korean government understood that excessive interaction with foreigners could easily damage such propaganda myths, myths that were and probably still are vital for the security of the state.

Additionally, the outside world was seen as a dangerous place, where perversion and abnormality were commonplace. The North Korean government styled itself as the protector of its people from such things, and this approach was probably genuinely supported by many North Koreans. I remember the surprise with which a North Korean professor reacted when he learned that listening to foreign broadcasts in the Soviet Union was perfectly legal. This aging professor, a rather sharp and intelligent man, was horrified, “What if such foreign broadcasts are not ideologically appropriate?” he protested.

“North Koreans were supposed to believe that they inhabited a lucky island of prosperity amidst a worldwide sea of poverty, destitution and suffering”

Thus, the lives of foreigners in North Korea were heavily restricted, and even the most mundane of activities were often subject to draconian restrictions. Since such bans and restrictions changed over time and were different according to the official standing of the person in question, I will limit myself to discussing the restrictions facing foreigner students in the Pyongyang of 1984-85.

STUDENT LIMITS

To start with, foreigners were not normally allowed to visit private houses. I am aware of a few cases in the early 1980s when such visits did happen, but only as the result of protracted and painful negotiations and preparations. North Korean hosts clearly received prior approval from the authorities, and in one case it seems likely that the idea of a home visit came from on high due to some political motive.

We were not allowed to cross the official administrative borders of Pyongyang. Given the vast size of this metropolitan area, this ban had little significance, however. At the time, I was a pretty good walker, but it was almost impossible for me to reach the edge of the city limits even during my very long excursions across the North Korean capital.

Somewhat surprisingly, foreigners were not allowed to go to the cinema theaters – for reasons best known to the authorities. Some museums could be visited freely and without any restrictions, while a trip to others would require preliminary permission, a North Korean escort, and would only be possible after a few weeks of negotiation. Surprisingly, the less ideological Museum of Fine Arts and the Museum of Korean History were open to the foreign public, while it took two weeks for me and a fellow student to get permission to go to the Museum of the Korean Revolution (the large museum located behind Kim’s massive statue on Mansu Hill).

“One of the most remarkable restrictions [for foreng students] was a total ban on access to catalogues of the Kim Il Sung University library, as well as catalogues of any other major North Korean library”

Within the university, foreign students also faced numerous restrictions. It would thus be more appropriate to describe us not as university students but rather as students attending language classes subordinated to the university. One of the most remarkable restrictions was a total ban on access to catalogues of the Kim Il Sung University library, as well as catalogues of any other major North Korean library. The catalogue room was guarded by the students, and any foreigner attempting to gain access would be politely but firmly waved away.

When we needed books, we had to lodge an application at our dormitory, and a librarian assigned to the foreigners’ dormitory would give us publications deemed to be suitable for foreigners. When an improper book was ordered, the librarian first tried to “forget” about the order, and when pressed would say that “such a book cannot be found in the collection of the library.”

In language classes, students were strictly segregated according to their nationality. Soviet students of that year came from different universities and they spoke Korean at vastly different levels. Nonetheless, we were told that it would be impossible for us to learn with students from Czechoslovakia, whose language level was very similar to mine and one other student. We were told that mixed groups, including students from two or more countries, were impossible. I do not understand the logic behind these bans, but in North Korea one should not always expect your hosts to be excessively logical in such matters.

FOREIGN INTERACTIONS

As a rule, common North Koreans avoided any lengthy public interaction with foreigners. Thus, meaningful exchanges were to be found only with a handful of people who were authorized to talk to foreigners. Such people included our teachers, personnel of hard currency shops and service centers, as well as our roommates. The roommates were North Korean students, selected for their academic achievements and political reliability and dispatched to live in the foreigners’ dormitory in order to keep an eye on us and also teach us the basics of Juche. Beyond these people, only some children and old people would be sometimes willing to chat, while others usually broke of conversation within a couple of minutes.

It was rather interesting to see how North Koreans reacted when a group of foreigners took a trolley bus or subway. If such a group was large, North Koreans usually kept as big a distance as was physically possible.

“Any hint of romantic contact between North Koreans and foreigners was out of the question”

Any hint of romantic contact between North Koreans and foreigners was out of the question. Any kind of excessively frequent and lengthy talk with a North Korean of the opposite sex, even if he/she was theoretically authorized to interact with foreigners, would soon attract much unfavourable attention. I was told that a few years earlier there had been one or two episodes where such “suspicious” friendships began to develop. They were immediately cut short by the administration.

I have been often asked whether my Soviet background helped me somehow. Obviously, this question should be answered in the negative. All foreigners were seen as suspicious and dangerous, and no exception was made for the Soviets whatsoever. Frankly, this made sense: under the veneer of friendship rhetoric, a great deal of mistrust and contempt existed between Moscow and Pyongyang, and everybody in the know on both sides was perfectly aware of this basic political fact.

At the same time, there was no sign of hostility toward foreigners. On the contrary, North Koreans were very polite, even deferential (being in my early 20s, I did not like someone giving up their seat for me on a subway). When we were lost, North Koreans always did what they could to help us. A couple of times, I and my friends discovered ourselves inside military installations – remarkably poorly marked, and often not fenced off. Given the nature of North Korean society, we felt rather worried, but most of the time, an officer or soldier soon appeared and very politely escorted us out, or if we asked, to the nearest trolley bus stop.

“Good day, Mr. American Imperialist Bastard”

Of course, foreigners were also the object of much popular attention because they were such a rare sight on the 1984 streets of Pyongyang. Such attention was usually quite polite and friendly, but sometimes funny incidents did happen. For example, a young Soviet diplomat who entered a small hard currency shop at the foreigners dorm was politely greeted by the sales clerk’s daughter. The 6 year old girl decided to address him exactly as similar-looking big-nosed people were addressed in films she had seen before, bowed and said: “Good day, Mr. American Imperialist Bastard.” The girl clearly meant to be polite, and indeed many kids in more remote areas greeted foreigners with deep bows and polite words.

Main picture: RetroDprk.com