"Beyond Utopia"

This week @IndependentLens features the documentary film Beyond Utopia produced by a former CIA agent and a right wing neocon about an evangelical pastor saving North Koreans. Deep thanks to progressive documentary filmmakers for this brilliant critique https://t.co/pOIc6HCYVg

— Christine Ahn (@christineahn) January 7, 2024

This is an excerpt from the open letter from Deeann Borshay Liem to the producer of the next US propaganda film about North Korea-

An Open Letter to Independent Lens about “Beyond Utopia”

We are concerned that Beyond Utopia presents an unbalanced and inaccurate narrative about Korean history and North Korean society. While the film’s verité sequences of the Roh and Lee families’ plight are compelling, noticeably lacking is any mention of the ongoing impact of the Korean War and U.S. policies that have destabilized the livelihood and well-being of North Korea’s people — factors that cause families like the Rohs and Lees to leave the country.

While an armistice stopped the fighting in 1953, a peace treaty was never signed. North and South Korea, as well as North Korea and the United States, are still at war. Ongoing hostilities have resulted in the hyper-militarization of North and South Korea and the remilitarization of Japan, threatening to engulf the region in renewed fighting. These factors contribute to North Korea’s siege mentality, nuclear weapons development, and the economic hardships faced by the civilian population.

(Source- 김어준의 겸손은힘들다 뉴스공장 2024년 1월 11일 youtube) Police washing away evidence (blood) at the scene of the attempted assassination of Lee Jae-myung soon after it happened

Very few people are doing any in depth coverage outside South Korea on the January 2 attempted assassination by Kim Jin-seong of opposition leader Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party. The coverage is superficial and the investigation by the Busan Police is disgraceful. The political assassinations of Martin Luther King and Malcolm X came to mind, as well as the assassinations of JFK and RFK. One South Korean youtube analsyt compared Lee's attempted assassination to that of one of Korea's most revered independence leaders, Kim Ku. Kim was assassinated June 26, 1949, by a young ROK army lieutenant during the administration of US installed strongman Syngman Rhee. Kim Ku's assassin was sentenced to life in prison, but was released after one year, restored to active service during the Korean War, rising to the rank of colonel. There were connections to US counterintelligence and Rhee's white terror organization. The assassin himself stated in his confession that he had been ordered to do so by Rhee's national security office.

Multiple South Korean opposition leaders and political analysts (on independent media) have pointed out the superficial nature of the current police investigation, which appears to be a coverup. Police washed away the blood from Lee's life threatening wound at the scene within minutes in attempt to support the media contention that the wound didn't bleed much and wasn't serious. The weapon used by Kim Jin-seong, in the attempted assassination, was a hunting knife which appears to have been filed down to a two edged dagger. Fortunately an alert democratic assembly member Jeong Cheong-rae took photos of the pool of blood with his hand phone before police washed it away. Lee was released from the Seoul National Hospital eight days after the January 2 attack. He hasn't fully recovered yet. There has been ridiculous media hype and excessive politically motivated recrimination concerning Lee's transfer from Pusan National University Hospital to Seoul National Universal Hospital for vascular surgery on the day of the attack. It's alleged that Lee received privileged treatment, that he shouldn't have been moved by the 119 helicopter, that his wound wasn't serious, that democratic party members defamed the reputation of the Busan hospital, and interfered with its operations. Typical of right wing motivated moves, a lawsuit has been filed. National Assembly representive Jeong Cheong-rae has publicly criticized the suit against him as one of the respondents and refuted the contentions as completely unfounded in fact.

There are so many loose ends and investigative irregularities that the opposition party has been openly criticizing it as a premature attempt unsupported by proper investigation to convince the public the attempted murder on Lee, characterized in the media as an "attack," was an individual crime rather than a conspiracy. The police effort appears to be directed from above which is not unexpected given the Yoon Seok-yeol's track record in this respect. The youtube analyst "Professor Kim," is predicting that the suspect will be assassinated in jail because he failed in the attack, and knows too much.

A Sincheonji supporter caught on video with the attacker on Jan. 1, made a throat cutting gesture with his hand while talking to the suspect.* When interviewed by police he obviously lied about their conversation and relationship. I'm basing this opinion on statements from two other witnesses which are inconsistent with Sincheonji witness's statement to police. Police also released a suspect in his 70s who agreed with the attacker to forward an 8 page document the attacker Kim Jin-seong, is said to have prepared to disseminate after Lee's murder was consummated. If this isn't aiding the assailant in his plot to murder Lee, nothing is. The police won't release the document. Even the reason the confidential evidence is not releassed is confidential (“비공개 이유도 비공개”).

* 출처: [단독] 李 암살 미수범, 범행 전날 신천지 신도 만났다-서울의 소리 - https://www.amn.kr/46566
서울의소리=윤재식 기자, 정병곤 기자 1.10.24

* Source OhMyNews youtube 1.09.24 이재명 대표 정치테러 진상 중대 증언 "무서웠다. 공범 있을 거라 생각" 살인미수범과 동승 1시간
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWE9UwFLw2U

Because the political opposition's back has not been broken as intended, there is a lot of concern that the Yoon administration will endeavor to raise military tensions with North Korea further to incite a crisis before the April 10 general election for the National Assembly. It's likely social media in South Korea are being manipulated by intelligence elements and radical conservative groups such as the Taeguki, to brand the opposition as internal enemies, communists and so on. Anyone who opposes Yoon is being branded as pro-communist in this effort. ( Yoon and his ministers have actually promoted this view by making statements to the same effect publicly in the recent past). The pro-US and pro-Japanese elements in South Korea are getting desperate as the election approaches. There is transparent manipulation of media polls to suggest Yoon's popularity is rising which is unlikely under the current circumstances. It is also suggested that public fear of the Yoon administration is affecting poll results.

Yoon's government may fall if a 200 seat opposition coalition forms after the April election (enough to overcome his vetoes). Even if the number of party assembly seats doesn't change much, the emerging authoritarian dictatorship will have to take further brazen moves in the open to secure its power. The US military structure in South Korea and northeast Asia may weaken somewhat, particularly the so called Trilateral Partnership if the conservative party PPP collapses in April. Lee is the architect of the potential return of a sovereign government by the people in South Korea, often associated with the independence movement in the public mind. Camp David is the Biden/neocon/mic "great accomplishment" which cannot be pushed back, so more bad developments may be anticipated.


note- I made minor changes to this original draft Jan 12, 12 noon EST, to identify Lee's attacker by name, and to clarify the Yoon administration's position.