February 26, 2008
North Koreans Reportedly Love 'Layla'
The Financial Times is reporting that the North Korean government has invited Eric Clapton to perform. The invitation comes on the heels of a historic visit by the New York Philharmonic to the Hermit Kingdom.
Judging by the New York Times' account of the intensely emotional concert, we can't even begin to imagine how "Slowhand" will be received. That is, by those North Koreans who have actually been permitted to listen to the British guitar icon's music.
FT reports that Clapton agreed to a concert "in principle," although his reps have yet to confirm it. Rock and pop are banned in North Korea. Some will have fun imagining Kim Jong Il rocking out to "Cocaine" -- but AP reports that his son, Kim Jong Chol, is the family's Clapton fan.
The Kim clan and other leaders of North Korea are known to be enthusiasts of Western culture, and movies in particular. Those luxuries are denied to the general population, which is permitted no access to outside media and is inundated with anti-American propaganda.
Pyongyang has been making awkward strides toward normalization with the West, even as it continues to jealously guard details of its weapons programs and lash out at U.S. foreign policy. It essentially blackmailed Washington and its neighbors in South Korea and Japan for guarantees on food, energy and financial aid in exchange for dismantling its nuclear program.
The North Korean State Symphony Orchestra will visit Britain this September. The Clapton invitation is apparently a reciprocation of that planned visit.
Despite these feel-good cultural exchanges, Western diplomats remain skeptical of Pyongyang's motives, in large part because it's broken agreements and lied about its nuclear program in the past. Equally troublesome is the epidemic starvation that's claimed millions of North Korean lives. Escapees tell of having to eat dirt and twigs for sustenance even though South Korea, Japan and the U.S. donate millions in food aid every year.
Exact figures are hard to come by; Pyongyang won't release them, and the government has a contentious relationship with outside food aid organizations -- even as it seeks their assistance.
Posted at 3:31 PM
Posted to:
Asia, Japan, North Korea, Nuclear Weapons, South Korea
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