Red Flag Mangyongdae Revolutionary School
Red Flag Mangyongdae Revolutionary School[2] is an elite school[3] in Mangyongdae district of Pyongyang, North Korea.[4] Established in 1947,[5] it is a special education school with access only to the Workers' Party of Korea, Korean People's Army, administrative and high-ranking officials’ families.[4][6] As of 2012, Mankyongdae School was one of three schools, alongside the Kang Ban-sok Institute and Namsan Senior High School, which serve families with very high Songbun rankings.[7] No wavering or hostile class children and very few children of high songbun, outside of the three “lines”, are allowed to attend these schools, and special schools like these do not exist outside of Pyongyang.[7]
| Red Flag Mangyongdae Revolutionary School | |
|---|---|
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| Location | |
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| Coordinates | 38°59′54″N 125°39′43″E / 38.99833°N 125.66194°E |
| Information | |
| Type | School |
| Established | October 12, 1947[1] |
| Founder | Kim Il Sung |
| School district | Mangyongdae district |
| Administrator | Lt. Col. Kim Hak Bin |
| Teaching staff | Ri Kyong Hui |
| Gender | Male |
| National ranking | High |
| Affiliation | Kang Pan-sok Revolutionary School in the western city of Nampho |
History
editOriginally, the school was called the Pyongyang School for the Bereaved Children of Revolutionaries (평양혁명자유가족학원), which was to "receive children of fallen revolutionaries" and "educate their children and train them into fine revolutionaries after the independence of Korea".[8] It was located at Kan-ri, Daedong, South Pyongan. After the formal establishment of North Korea it was moved to Pyongyang and there the first statue of Kim Il Sung was erected, according to North Korean authorities, at the suggestion of Kim Jong-suk, Kim Il-sung's wife.[9]
As of April 2012[update], Lt. Col. Kim Hak Bin was an administrator at the school.[10] Ri Kyong Hui was a biology teacher.[10]
At one time, Kim Won-ju, who was Kim Hyong-rok's third son, was assigned the position as State Security Department officer whose assignments included rooting out disloyalty to the regime among students at the ultra-elite Mangyongdae School.[3]
In 1982, O Guk-ryol, the then chief of the armed forces staff, said the school produced revolutionary warriors.[11]
By 1987, graduates[11] were:
- 20% of the central party committee,
- 30% of the party politburo, and
- 32% of the military commission of the central committee.
As of April 2013[update], the all girls version of this school is at the Kang Pan-sok Revolutionary School in the western city of Nampho.[10][12]
Kim Jong Un, who was educated in Switzerland, is not an alumnus of this school[10] and has visited this school six times as of July 2018,[13] the most recent being in 2022 where he attended the school's 75th anniversary.[1]
Curriculum
editIn addition to a high school curriculum, students receive military training.[11] Graduates enter the army for three years and usually become party members.[11] Generally, about 120 students graduate per year.[11] According to Kang Myong-do, "children of the elite, who in the past would have gone to Namsan now went to Mangyongdae." If the parents of a child were still alive, then only children of officials at least at the level of party department head were eligible to enroll.[14]
Alumni
edit- Kim Jong Il[10][15][13]
- General O Kuk-ryol
- the daughter of Kim Hyong-gwon[8]
- the illegitimate children of Kim Il Sung[16]
- According to Ko Young-hwan, Kim Jong-su went to this school.[17]
- Vice Marshal Kim Yong-chun (NDC Vice Chairman and Minister of the People's Armed Forces)[18]
- General Hyon Chol-hae (Director of the NDC Standing Committee [Presidium])[18]
- Yon Hyong-muk, the North Korean premier in 1988-92[13]
- Thae Jong-su[19]
- Monica, Maribel, and Paco Macías, the three youngest children of Francisco Macías Nguema.[20]
References
edit- ^ a b "Article-KCNA-Respected Comrade Kim Jong Un's Speech at Commemoration of 75th Anniversary of Revolutionary Schools". Korean Central News Agency. 14 October 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- ^ Ahn Jong Sik (2015-02-10). "250-Mile Journey: a Study Tour of Penance". DailyNK. Retrieved 2015-07-27.
- ^ a b Martin, Bradley K. (2004). Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. p. 189. ISBN 0-312-32221-6.
- ^ a b Martin, Bradley K. (2004). Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. ISBN 0-312-32221-6.
- ^ "A glance at the Revolutionary School for elites in Pyongyang". SINA.com. 5 July 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
- ^ Bayly, Tom (22 April 2013). "Inside a school shaping N Korea's future military leaders". BBC. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
- ^ a b Collins, Robert (2012). Marked for Life: Songbun North Korea's Social Classification System. United States of America. p. 75. ISBN 978-0985648008.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ a b Martin, Bradley K. (2004). Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. p. 191. ISBN 0-312-32221-6.
- ^ "There Is Even a Bunker for Statues in Case of Emergencies". Daily NK. 15 April 2008. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
- ^ a b c d e "North Korean pre-teens training to 'seek revenge on American imperialists". The Daily News by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. April 20, 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
His son, current leader Kim Jong Un, did not.
- ^ a b c d e Martin, Bradley K. (2004). Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. p. 471. ISBN 0-312-32221-6.
- ^ "Kim Jong Un checks the samples of overcoats for the children of Mangyongdae Revolutionary School and Kang Pan-sok Revolutionary School on March 24, 2013". Reuters/KCNA). March 24, 2013. Archived from the original on 21 August 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
- ^ a b c "The school that trains the next generation of North Korean leaders". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2018-07-27.
- ^ Martin, Bradley K. (2004). Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. p. 472. ISBN 0-312-32221-6.
- ^ Martin, Bradley K. (2004). Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. p. 471. ISBN 0-312-32221-6.
- ^ Martin, Bradley K. (2004). Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. p. 192. ISBN 0-312-32221-6.
- ^ Martin, Bradley K. (2004). Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. p. 372. ISBN 0-312-32221-6.
- ^ a b "Kim Jong Un Visits Air Force Unit #378 (Corrected)". KCNA. 28 January 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
- ^ "Thae Jong Su (T'ae Cho'ng-su)". North Korea Leadership Watch. 24 February 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
- ^ Sang-Hun, Choe (11 October 2013). "Fond Recollections of Dictators, Colored Later by the Lessons of History (Published 2013)". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 March 2021.