DPRK Foundation Day (North Korea)
DPRK Foundation Day, celebrated on September 9, marks the establishment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) in 1948. This day commemorates North Korea's founding shortly after the end of Japanese colonial rule, during a period when the Korean Peninsula was divided into two parts influenced by the Soviet Union and the United States. North Korea, known for its strict governance and the cult of personality surrounding its leaders, has a population of over 20 million, with approximately 2.5 million residing in the capital, Pyongyang. The founding leader, Kim Il Sung, ruled until his death in 1994, after which his son, Kim Jong Il, assumed power.
Foundation Day festivities traditionally involve mandatory military parades and orchestrated rallies where citizens express loyalty to the state and its leaders. However, the extent of genuine public support for these observances remains uncertain, as access for foreign visitors is heavily restricted, limiting insight into North Korean society. The day serves as a significant reminder of the nation's historical and political context within the broader landscape of the Korean Peninsula.
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DPRK Foundation Day (North Korea)
DPRK Foundation Day (North Korea)
The closed Asian nation of North Korea honors its founding every September 9, the anniversary of the creation of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on that date in 1948.
North Korea occupies the northern half of the divided Korean Peninsula on Asia's northeast coast while South Korea occupies the southern half. Korea was controlled by Japanese forces until after World War II, when in 1948 the region was split by the Soviet Union and the United States into pro-communist North Korea and pro-Western South Korea. Known officially as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North Korea has a population of over 20 million people, approximately 2.5 million of whom live in the capital and largest city of Pyongyang. The nation was ruled by Kim Il Sung, head of the totalitarian North Korean Communist Party, until he died on July 8, 1994. Afterward, leadership fell to his son, Kim Jong Il.
While South Korea developed a thriving and prosperous capitalist society over the decades, the North maintained strict controls over virtually every facet of life and built up a massive cult of personality, which required people to revere Kim Il Sung and then Kim Jong Il. As one commentator has observed, “Some have argued that North Korean Communism is a caricature, a throwback to Stalinism. But this museum of Communism, the Asian Madame Tussaud's, is all too alive.”
Observances to honor Foundation Day have typically been mandatory, consisting of military parades and highly choreographed rallies of civilians drilled to express loyalty to their nation and leader. As foreign visitors are almost never granted access to the country outside of Pyongyang and certain other highly supervised locations, little is known as to whether this or any North Korean holidays have real popular support.