Special interview with Park Han-shik

Posted on : 2012-10-08 09:37 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
University of Georgia professor discusses life-long obsession with North Korea

By Park Hyun, Washington correspondent

“Is there a person named Park Hon? Former President Jimmy Carter said there is a person named Park Hon at University of Georgia. Some guy in Korea is desperately trying to find out who Park Hon is.”
Professor Park Han-shik, who teaches political science at the University of Georgia, received this call 18 years ago in June of 1994 from the Consul General in Atlanta. Park answered, “That would probably be me.” Park is known in the United States by the name of ‘Han Park’. However, this incident was due to the mispronunciation of Park’s name to ‘Hon Park’ by former President Jimmy Carter, when Carter visited North Korea.
When Carter visited North Korea, the United States was planning to attack the nuclear facilities in Yongbyon of North Korea to prevent extraction of nuclear fuel rods from the reactors. To prevent this attack, Jimmy Carter visited North Korea and found a breakthrough for the problem. During this visit, Park played a crucial role behind the scenes. After receiving an urgent request from former President Carter to help him for his visit to North Korea, Park immediately contacted North Korea and received a formal invitation through fax and gave it to Carter, who was able to travel to North Korea within two days.
“Had Carter not visited North Korea during that time, former President Bill Clinton would have conducted a surgical strike against Yongbyon. If that had happened, another large-scale war would have broken out on the Korean Peninsula. I still believe that having taken part in preventing this scenario was the most meaningful task that I have done.”
Professor Park has visited North Korea approximately 50 times so far. He is known as ‘Designer of Peace in North Korea - US relations’, and has worked for peace on the Korean Peninsula for 20 years, as an academic of political science. He was interviewed in early September at the Center for the Study of Global Issues at the University of Georgia in Athens. During the interview, his strong voice made it hard to believe that he was 73 years old. There was a follow-up telephone interview in mid-September.

- As nations surrounding the Korean Peninsula reach periods of leadership change, it seems that we have entered an atmosphere of drastic change.

“Yes I agree. I believe that Xi Jinping, who will be China’s next leader, should be assessed most carefully. Most people believe that Xi Jinping will be friendly toward the United States and the West. But I think it is exactly the opposite. Deng Xiaoping said that the color of the cat does not matter when catching a mouse. That cat has caught a lot of mice, and as a result, it has become a time when the color of the cat has become an issue. Wen Jiabao was one of the people who supported what happened at Tiananmen Square and Hu Jintao also sees the incident with a positive perspective. Therefore, they continued to implement policies of capitalism. But as the economy grew for 30 years, problems accumulated. It was Jiang Zemin who said that China couldn’t keep on rushing down the same path. Jiang Zemin sides with Xi Jinping. Jiang Zemin and Xi Jinping both have backgrounds in the revolution army and there are big difference between a businessman and military personnel. It is very important to see what Xi Jinping will carry out.”

- How do you forecast relations between the US and China, categorized as ‘G2’ during the era of Xi Jinping.

“As China starts to show movements to reign as a powerful country, I predict that there will be some degree of tension between the two countries. The relationship will not be soft, as during Wen Jiabao or Hu Jintao’s times in power. But there will not be a Cold War era order where two conflicting systems are colliding with each other. The economies of the two are too dependent on each other. Also, whereas there is a strong tendency for the United States to export the ideology of the Washington Consensus, China has a foreign policy that is mostly focused around its economy, which will reduce the chance of conflict.

- How do you assess the current situation in Northeast Asia? It seems that the United States is building a missile defense system with North Korean nuclear program as an excuse, the surroundings are expanding their militaries.

"The United States is currently fearful of China. The United States believes that China has been taking American jobs. Once Xi Jinping takes the leadership in China, there will be a military expansion in China. In Japan, the right wing has been rising with North Korea‘s nuclear program as an excuse. And there have been movements towards becoming a militaristic nation in Japan. In this situation, as China has the technology and the money, they will further invest in military expansion. These movements are a loss for Korea. We must work toward stopping the North Korean nuclear program for our sake. If an arms race starts in Northeast Asia, in the end, Japan and China will become militarized countries. In terms of domestic politics in Korea, it does not matter who becomes the next president. But for the sake of the restoration of the Korean nation, I hope that he or she will conduct a wise foreign policy and North Korean policy."

Professor Park was also very worried about how North Korea - China relationship is becoming deeper by the day. He said, "If the current situation continues for another 10 years, China will absorb North Korea economically." He added, "This is not because North Korea wants it. North Korea wants its economy to be diversified. But this is blocked due to sanctions by the United States and the UN. North Korea becoming a subordinate to China economically is not good, not only for North Korea, but also for the South and the United States."
Professor Park also emphasizes replacing the Armistice Treaty, which has lasted for over 59 years, with a Peace Treaty, to establish peace on the Korean Peninsula. Professor Park stated that he has recently been trying to persuade the US government and its people that with the signing of a peace treaty with North Korea, United States and North Korea can become global partners in denuclearization. Professor Park has high hopes on the second term of the Obama Administration as President Obama’s chances for reelection improve.
"First term US presidents are very conscious of the media, but in their second term, presidents try to receive judgments only from history. This will be the same for President Obama. President Obama will tenaciously push through his policies. The reason I support President Obama is he promoted global denuclearization from his candidacy. I recommend inviting North Korea as a partner for global denuclearization to US officials that I have contact with. If North Korea is invited, it will gladly join. In other words, the first nuclear power should meet with the last country that is trying to become a nuclear power and declare global denuclearization. I expect that there will be a big change within the next two years. And a peace treaty will be concluded upon shortly."
Prof. Park then changed the topic to the current North Korean regime under the leadership of Kim Jong-Un. Professor Park already visited North Korea twice this year. He forecasted that North Korea will speed up economic development with the Chinese development model as a basis.

- In a recent interview you mentioned that Kim Jong-un could become the next Deng Xiaoping, on what basis?

"Once politics settle down and the legitimacy of the regime is established, it is only natural for new leaders to pursue economic development. Deng Xiaoping also thought of economic development as the most important goal after the Cultural Revolution ended and the chaos settled. North Korea also has become a military power and legitimacy and stability of the regime has been established. In addition, the road to economic development is within sight. Deng Xiaoping strongly pursued opening the economy to the outside world. And it seems that Kim Jong-un is moving down the road of the ‘Chinese Model’. There have even been efforts to improve North Korea - US relations to bring foreign investment with the United States. I am not directly stating that Kim Jong-un has set Deng Xiaoping as a model This comparison was only to help in understanding of my point."

- Do you think Kim Jong-un has enough tenacity and a strong enough mindset to be able to open the economy?

"We only have to assess what Kim Jong-un has stated and pursued. On April 15th, Kim Jong-un made his first statement at a military parade. I was there and I heard him clearly state that it is time for economic development. It was a statement that, as military security, ideological, and cultural aspects have firmly taken root, it is now time to move forward without looking back. He has made the same statement in other speeches. We can clearly see his will."

-Can a young leader do what Kim Jong-Il could not and overcome both internal and external pressure?

"We have to consider that the variables have changed. First of all, the China variable has changed. In the past, China did not made loud voice as a single powerful country. But now it seems that China has gained confidence. China can carry out its policies according to its own rules irrespective of UN sanctions. Recognizing this, Kim Jong-Il visited China three times and solidified the relationship with China. In addition, the internal atmosphere in North Korea has changed as well. Before, under the leadership of Kim Jong-Il, North Korea did not state much about learning the ways of China. However, now North Korea is directly stating that it must adopt the Chinese model. Lastly, the US variable has changed. During the leadership of Kim Jong-Il, the United States was under the Bush administration, and there was not much room for improvement of North Korea - US relations. But it is different now."

- How is the position of Kim Jong-un within North Korea?

"Unlike what is seen from the outside, Kim Jong-Un is establishing a firm position within the system. There are some ongoing debate regarding Jang Song-thaek and Ri Yong-ho being the actual power holders, but none of it is true. Everyone is gathered around Kim Jong-un and assisting him. There is no evidence of a power struggle within the ruling group, nor is there a chance of an uprising from below. This is why I believe that North Korea is ready to pursue domestic growth. There could some hindrances depending on which candidate takes office [in South Korea] next year, but main focus in North Korea will be speeding up economic growth."

- Is it true that General Ri Yong-ho was purged?

"General Ri Yong-ho did not have any people around him. As a result, there was no massive purging. But there were cases where some of the older generation moved out and the younger general moved in due to the generation gap. In addition, General Rhee was 70 years old and was not in good health. And as Kim Jong-Il, who General Rhee served under, passed away, psychologically he could have had thoughts of stepping down. I do not believe that General Rhee was purged or taken down against his will.

There is not much information on Professor Park, as he does most of his work in the United States. In the following questions, we decided to ask more into his personal life such as how he developed his interest in North Korea.

-What is your reason for having visited North Korea more than 50 times?

“There is a kind of obsession that I cannot get rid of. I was born in Manchuria when the Communist Party and Kuomintang were having street battles. There were brutal hand-to-hand battles. I was born in Manchuria because my grandfather had moved there. But I returned to Korea when Korea gained independence. On my way back, I stayed in refugee camps and finally settled down and lived in Pyongyang for two years during my childhood. That is when the 38th Parallel was drawn. We crossed the 38th Parallel bracing threats to our lives and settled down in Daegu. But something worse happened. The Korean War broke out. And this event drove me to study politics. I was eager to know how wars can be prevented and why they break out in the first place. Then I realized, while studying, that the United States conducted most of the wars. This fact drove me to gain interest in the United States and pushed me to study in the United States. And in order to study how to prevent formation of a society where people kill each other, I established Center for Study of Global Issues (Globis) at University of Georgia. In 1994, the United States planned to strike North Korea. But I could not stand the thought that if the United States was to attack North Korea, all-out war would start and millions of our people would die. As a result, my goal became to preventing any type of attack against North Korea by the United States. And this is also the reason why I have mentioned transition to a peace treaty. Lastly, I never actually majored in North Korea studies. But as I frequently traveled to North Korea and met its people, I became an expert on North Korea.”

-What are your future plans?

“Once the presidential races in both Korea and the United States are over, I plan to organize an unofficial Track 2 meeting next spring with the goal of concluding a peace treaty. I have already formed an agreement on its basic format, of having participants from the three countries: South Korea, North Korea, and the United States. In this meeting there will be dialogue regarding finding a new road map for North Korea - US relations and also for North-South relations.”

Translated by Kim Joon-ki, Hankyoreh English intern

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]

button that move to original korean article (클릭시 원문으로 이동하는 버튼)

Related stories

Most viewed articles