Do you think visiting North Korea is unethical?
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I assume the argument would be giving tourism revenue to an authoritarian state.
All sanctions on the DPRK have done is strengthen the legitimacy of the government and starve people. Witholding resources hasn't damaged the government, rather, it has had a uniting effect on the people. Witholding tourist revenue isn't going to change that, just slow development down.
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You can’t compare the 2. North Korea is a totalitarian hereditary dictatorship. As bad as the US might be or get, they’re worlds apart.
If you visit the USA, you support the regime that committed genocide in North Outta Korea
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I mean... no, it would be the equivalent of going on a state-sanctioned tour of parts of Germany that weren't demolished yet, because that's what you do when you go to DPRK. They don't take you to labor camps.
Honestly, any tourism revenue made by DPRK is a drop in the ocean compared to what they make off crypto and hacking. If you're in a position to visit and you're curious, I don't see anything particularly wrong with visiting - just be aware you're getting a carefully-tailored experience, not the whole picture.
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Imma buck the trend and say yes. No amount of sanctions lifting is going to make them better or change their governments. Looks at china, russia, half the Middle East and Africa. The money you give them goes straight to the regime. You can put other North Korean lives of those on your tours at risk by asking the wrong questions or looking in the wrong direction to saying the wrong thing which can send them, and their family for up to four generations to a labor camp. No amount of interaction is going to override the fact that they live there or cause the population to revolt. All you’re doing is giving I’m money and putting lives of those you interact with and those WHICH ARE NOT EVEN BORN YET at risk. Yes it is immoral. Don’t tour the DPRK.
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No, why would it be
Because every cent you spend there goes more or less directly into Kim Jong Un’s pocket?
Unless you’re a journalist or investigator or something like that (and North Korea, for some train, doesn’t seems to love those types). But if you’re just going as a looky-loo: don’t.
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Imma buck the trend and say yes. No amount of sanctions lifting is going to make them better or change their governments. Looks at china, russia, half the Middle East and Africa. The money you give them goes straight to the regime. You can put other North Korean lives of those on your tours at risk by asking the wrong questions or looking in the wrong direction to saying the wrong thing which can send them, and their family for up to four generations to a labor camp. No amount of interaction is going to override the fact that they live there or cause the population to revolt. All you’re doing is giving I’m money and putting lives of those you interact with and those WHICH ARE NOT EVEN BORN YET at risk. Yes it is immoral. Don’t tour the DPRK.
No amount of sanctions have risked government collapse in the DPRK either, all sanctions have accomplished is collective punishment. This is a deeply chauvanist take.
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I checked, since time fly.
I have been there in 2009.
Here are the photos i took:
... wrong link wait ...feel free to ask. We got in/out by train from China, flying in is less interesting, since you don't get much opportunity to see the countryside.
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Interesting question. I suspect that it's similar (but different) to asking, should you watch a movie made by someone who later was found to be a criminal at the time that movie was made.
I suspect that the answer depends on your personal moral compass, the norms, values and standards you shape your life by.
There's a famous speech by Australian Lieutenant General David Lindsay Morrison AO, who said:
"The standard you walk past, is the standard you accept."
Source: https://en.m.wikiquote.org/wiki/David_Morrison
In other words, I think it's up to each individual to decide how they feel about it and act accordingly.
But you asked how I feel about it.
In short, I think that we live in a civil society where the regime in that country is not representative of a world I want to be part of. As such, travelling there under the current regime is not something I'd contemplate.
I'd also point out that I feel the same way about visiting the United States of America under its current regime.
Finally, I suppose there's an aspect of risk associated with visiting either country. I have no way to evaluate how that might compare with other extreme sports, but I suppose there's a thrill that draws in some individuals, overriding any moral considerations.
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I checked, since time fly.
I have been there in 2009.
Here are the photos i took:
... wrong link wait ...feel free to ask. We got in/out by train from China, flying in is less interesting, since you don't get much opportunity to see the countryside.
Wow, you weren't kidding, that's a lot of photos!
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Most things you can do with your money are unethical, i.e. support a bad system that unnecessarily hurts people.
As far as that goes though, imo visiting the DPRK is a relatively bad one. I don't see the benefit for yourself, you get to see a tour of exactly what they want you to see, nothing real will ever be experienced. You put yourself in massive danger, tourists there have been detained and killed. All the money you spend goes directly to support the authorian government, which only seems to care about giving themselves a life of luxury and their people barely enough so they can maintain their luxury.
You do get a view of an authoritarian regime working firsthand, which is a positive, but I just feel like it's alread good/bad enough to know about it than having experienced it yourself.
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I mean, some people see the whole country as a national concentration camp. Citizens can’t leave and their entire lives are controlled/dictated by the state. I’m actually visiting next month.
comparing the whole country to a concentration camp massively downplays the conditions in concentration camps. I'm sure being a citizen there isn't fun but it's still different.
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More unethical to visit the USA right now tbh.
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Because every cent you spend there goes more or less directly into Kim Jong Un’s pocket?
Unless you’re a journalist or investigator or something like that (and North Korea, for some train, doesn’t seems to love those types). But if you’re just going as a looky-loo: don’t.
Because every cent you spend there goes more or less directly into Kim Jong Un’s pocket?
Where did you read this ?
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Visiting? No.
Saluting a NK General while you are there? Probably.
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Go, absolutely. I understand there might be ethical implications, but i can strongly recomend you go, it's a lifetime experience that will change your view on the world.
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No, I want to visit there!
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Because every cent you spend there goes more or less directly into Kim Jong Un’s pocket?
Where did you read this ?
Ok, sure, let’s discuss. Tell me where you think any money you would spend in North Korea would ultimately go.
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No, I want to visit there!
Honestly I just really want to try Pyongyang nengmyeun, which is more "clean" and minimally seasoned than South Korean styles of nengmyeun, yet is still seen as one of the best styles of nengmyeun in South Korea as well.
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No. If it is, is visiting the US more unethical?
I would say, it's more dangerous to visit US than NK.
In the US you can be in trouble for many reasons.I have to say, it's easier to be in trouble while traveling in the US than in NK.
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Yes. I’ve seen someone say that visiting present-day North Korea is akin to visiting Auschwitz during WW2.
You think one man has made the entire country a death camp?
