North Korean circus ahead of Russian Central Election Commission

The outgoing week was filled with a lot of news, but its political shape was, of course, determined by the summing up of the Single Voting Day and the visit to our country of the leader of the DPRK. The coincidence of these two events is an excellent reason to turn to the electoral practices of our Far Eastern friends.

“The Central Election Management Commission (CERC) of North Korea highly appreciated the level of the EDC in Russia,” reports the Pyongyang Times telegram channel. The channel’s profile states that it broadcasts news from the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), “the only reliable source of information about the DPRK for foreign countries.” But on the KCNA website, its Russian-language version, such news could not be found. So this is fake news. More precisely – banter, a sophisticated parody.

By the way, if someone thinks that they recognized the parody by the abbreviation CIRCUS, then they are very mistaken. Everything here is exactly right: the main electoral department of the DPRK is called exactly that in Russian. However, even if it were called a circus in Korean, North Korea would not see anything wrong with it. The circus is held in high esteem there. Evidence of this is this relatively recent message from that KCNA (and this is by no means a parody): “A ceremonial meeting was held on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the publication of the work of the great leader Comrade Kim Jong Il “On the Art of the Circus.”

“The work of the great Commander is a large encyclopedia and an immortal great program for circus creativity, which is based on Juche and original ideas and theories about the essence of the circus and for the first time in history scientifically based, comprehensively systematized, and in a new way illuminated the principles and paths that must be followed in the development of the Juche circus, the basic principles and methods of circus creativity,” the message states. In general, it seems like a really serious, useful work.

But with all due respect to its author, one cannot help but note that of all three representatives of the ruling Kim dynasty, he is the only one who is out of work today. Well, yes, the circus theorist will soon be in his grave for 12 years, or rather, in the mausoleum, the “Kumsusan Palace of the Sun.” So what? Lying next to Kem Jong Il, his father, Kim Il Sung, is formally still the current leader – the “eternal president of the DPRK.” For reference: this title was awarded to the eldest Kim four years after his death, in 1998.

There are no other living presidents in North Korea today. The government position of the country’s current leader, Kim Jong-un, the grandson of the “eternal president”, is Chairman of the State Council of the DPRK. According to the North Korean Constitution, this is the “supreme leader of the DPRK.” The Chairman of the State Council is elected by the Supreme People’s Assembly, whose composition is renewed every five years. The last elections to the Supreme National Assembly were held in Juche 108 (the reporting point of the chronology adopted in the DPRK is the year of birth of Kim Il Sung), that is, in our opinion, in 2019.

Here is what the KCNA news agency reported about their holding: “All the people and military personnel, who celebrated the day of the elections of deputies to the Supreme National Assembly, with one desire to monolithically strengthen the socialist system of our type, serving the interests of the masses, gathered at the voting places. At the festively decorated voting places, a sea of ​​ceremonies opened up dances and various artistic performances, which raised the atmosphere of the elections.”

It is understandable that it is quite difficult to verify information about the wishes of voters, but as far as dancing is concerned, it is the holy truth. “Since early morning, the streets of Pyongyang are filled with thousands of smartly dressed people who go to vote,” a TASS correspondent reported on the same day, March 10, 2019. “Everywhere at large intersections and squares of the capital of the DPRK, orchestras and singers perform folk melodies and popular revolutionary songs. Many voters showed up at their polling stations long before they opened and staged impromptu open-air dances…”

Unfortunately, such a festive atmosphere, such songs and dances have not yet been observed in our elections. But we are even further behind our North Korean friends in terms of turnout. According to the CIRC, 99.99 percent of voters registered in the lists took part in the parliamentary elections in the DPRK. The only people reported to be absent were those who worked in foreign countries and on the high seas. And this is without any DEGs!

For comparison: the average turnout in the last Russian regional elections, according to the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation, was 45.65 percent, and in the last parliamentary elections – 51.72 percent. But not everything is so bad: according to such an indicator as the percentage of those who voted for government candidates, we are rapidly catching up with friends. Despite the fact that friends have a clear advantage in this race: there are no alternative elections.

In each constituency there is only one candidate – from the United Democratic Fatherland Front, which unites all three existing parties in the DPRK: the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea (its general secretary is Kim Jong-un) and its two satellite allies – the Social Democratic Party of Korea and the Young People’s Party friends of the heavenly path.

That is, the voter’s task is greatly simplified. There is no need to go into a closed booth and aim your pen at the desired square. There are no boxes on the North Korean ballot, and, accordingly, no checkboxes need to be checked. You just need to take the issued piece of paper and put it in the ballot box. Well, theoretically, however, before lowering you can cross out the proposed candidate. But this, according to official data, has not happened for a long time. Since 1962, the United Front has won elections at all levels with a 100% result.

According to the Korean Central News Agency, the lack of intrigue in the elections does not mean that the electoral system is imperfect. Everything is just the opposite, KCNA reports in an article with a self-explanatory title – “The Excellent Electoral System of Korea”: “The electoral system of Korea is the most popular and democratic system… Every citizen over 17 years of age has active and passive voting rights… In In the event of the nomination of candidates, all voters can freely discuss… Elections in Korea are an important moment to further strengthen the power of the Republic and demonstrate the strength and invincibility of the socialist system, where the leader, the party and the masses are welded together as one.”

However, as evil tongues say, such cohesion between the leader, the party and the masses is achieved not only and not so much by agitation and persuasion, but by violence. Already, non-participation in elections without valid reasons is fraught with serious consequences for the “dissident”, and deleting the name of the only approved candidate can generally be regarded as an anti-state act. In short, trying to keep pace with the leader and the party is possible only if life is not precious.

But we, of course, will not believe the malicious imperialist voices, but the official authorities of the DPRK and their information mouthpieces. Otherwise there will be no friendship.