POLITICAL INDOCTRINATION IN THE NORTH KOREAN ARMY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 2, 2008
• Sequence Number: 5
• Publication Date: August 29, 1956
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
25X1
4e
Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
 Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
3004221
REPORT INFORMATION REPORT
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
This material contains information affecting the National Defense of the United States within the meaning of the Espionage Laws, Title
18, U.S.C. Secs. 793 and 794, the transmission or revelation of which in any manner to an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.
C-0-N-F-I-D-E-N-T-I-A-L
NOFORN
DATE OF INFO.
PLACE ACQUIRE
DATE ACQUIRED
REQUIREMENT NO. RD
REFERENCES 25X1
C-0-N-F-I-D-E-N-T-I-A-L
NOFORN
FBI AEC
Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
Political Indoctrination in the DATE DISTR. August 1956
North Korean Army
NO. OF PAGES 1
 Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
Political Indoctrination
1. Methods of Indoctrination
OF 0 11111
Cti, v? ~ UkU
The 2nd Company, 1st Battalion, 87th Regiment, 9th Infantry Brigade,
1st Corps of the People's Army gave 25X1
the soldiers political indoctrination twice a week (from 8 - 10 a.m.
on Tuesdays and Fridays) and held political report meetings three times
a week (about 30 minutes from 7 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays),
The political indoctrination was conducted on the platoon level and each
platoon had a lecturer and an assistant lecturer. They expounded certain
given texts and checked the extent of understanding by the audience.
At political report meetings, generally they read the Nodon
(Labor Press) and made comments on the articles
decisions of
round of the
second round
(1) The first is the story of a Nodong Sinmun article on a big four
conference. The article claimed, "The Soviet Union frustrated
the conspiracy of the American imperialists and the South Korean
puppet regime of Syngman RHEE to colonize the whole of Korea.
The American imperialists are constantly seeking an opportunity
for aggression, but the Soviet Union always prevents it.
However, we must kick out the aggressive American imperialists
and their running dogs of the Syngman RHEE group as early as possible."
Commenting on the article, the lecturer emphasized that, "We must be
constantly on the alert and fulfil the given tasks."
(2) The second is a story on another Nodong Sinmun article on a South
Korean air force captain who sought refuge in North Korea. It
reported that a South Korean airforce captain, unable to put up
with various oppressions, fled to North Korea with his family, and
that the North Korean Government warmly received them and allowed
the captain to hold his same military rank in North Korea.
Allegedly quoting the captain, the paper exposed the situation in
South Korea, saying that the South Korean forces were short of food
and the farmers, constituting 80% of the, entire population in South
Korea, had been deprived of all their grains, and that the South
Korean people were ruled by threat and with sticks.
It also said that all the'f actories in South Korea were at a
standstill and that Syngman RHEE and his followers were enriching
themselves at the expence of the people. Commenting on the article,
the lecturer urged the soldiers to fully carry out the given res-
ponsibilities and strive for liberation of the unfortunate people
in South Korea.
told at the political report meetin
political indoctrination concerned documents on the
the April plenary session of the Labor Party. The first
indoctrination was completed by the end of 1955 and tha
began in early 1956
The major items of the documents were; 1) strengthening of the political
indoctrination for all the party members; 2) economic savings; 3) and
elimination of bureacracy. The lecturers explained what the soldie rs
should do to assist in these tasks, two of the stories
Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
 Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
Non-Communist Printed Materials
4.
5. Government Control of Non-communist Printed Matters
During the war, the people were ordered to stay at home while leaflets
were dropped by enemy planes and the leaflets were picked up by Party
members and the officials of district people's committees. If one was
caught reading a leaflet, he was sent to the people's committee or a
police station for ideological check.
7. Communist Broadcasts to the Public
a loud speaker fixed on an electric pale along a highway
in Kaesong-si in.pril 1955. The speaker was then relaying a Pyongyang
broadcast.
8.
25X1
Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
 Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9
9. Customs and Tranditions Destroyed by Communism
Because of Communism, superstitions have been wiped out in North Korea.
But some aged people desire the restoration of the offering of sacrifices
to the Guardian of the Mountain. They feared that calamities would fall
upon their village if the annual offering of sacrifices wao stopped.
Approved For Release 2008/12/02 : CIA-RDP83-00418R005700040005-9