I think everyone agrees that the atrocities must stop, but how to achieve that goal is a different matter entirely. North Korean leaders and officials have too much to lose from any massive changes at the top and everyone at the bottom is too physically weak and misinformed to pull together. Any would-be dissenters have no means of contacting each other to unite and as many citizens fear for their life they will remain silent.

Without access to the internet or the ability to even move between towns within their own country, many North Koreans genuinely don’t know what it means to be free. They have no frame of reference, they can’t just switch the telly on and watch Home and Away and go “hang on? They’re having a nicer time than me?” They are simply kept in the darkest of closets, and anyone who tries to crack open the door by just a touch is mercilessly and heavy-handedly crushed.

The other side of the political coin is that North Korea’s only allies are China and Russia and no one is keen to ruffle their feathers. Having said that, relations have broken down somewhat over recent years. North Korea’s nuclear posturing last year wound their communist allies up a treat and even Russia and China think that North Korea’s regime is a bit too brutal. That in itself speaks volumes.

So I shall end this article in the same vein as pretty much every other article about North Korea by saying that this will not be a problem quickly solved.

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