The Kim Regime Demands 'Honest' Feedback from Citizens on the War in Ukraine
May 22
1 min read
News Summary
North Korean authorities have ordered citizens in Sariwon, the capital and largest city of North Hwanghae Province, to write essays expressing their honest feelings about the country’s participation in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
This directive, framed as a sentiment-gathering initiative, requires both individual and family-written essays, all signed by adult household members.
While local police claim it is a provincial initiative, many suspect it was ordered by central authorities to assess ideological loyalty and inform future propaganda.
Citizens view the move as a covert method of political surveillance under the pretense of open feedback.
Commentary
This move clearly reveals the Kim regime's deep anxiety about rising public discontent over troop deployment to Russia.
As many North Koreans rightly perceive, the initiative is less about understanding sentiment and more about identifying dissenters through a subtler form of political surveillance.
Interestingly, the regime is resorting to this indirect tactic rather than overt repression this time. It signals that the regime recognizes the limits of force in quelling dissatisfaction over such a sensitive issue.
Knowing the regime's real intent, citizens will not definitely submit honest feedback. And this approach is unlikely to defuse the situation; rather, it will heighten distrust, deepen resentment, and ultimately intensify the very backlash the regime seeks to contain.
