Northern Exposure: A North Korean Travelogue

There is scant information about Kim Jong Il and North Korea, the country he rules with an iron fist. Information gleaned from a few defectors and spin put out by the South Korean media paints Kim as an eccentric, paranoid recluse.

Kim inherited power from his father, Kim Il Sung, in 1994; the title of president still belongs to his deceased father, the eternal President. Like his father, Kim has no intention of putting an end to the country’s isolation. The people are poor and survive on meagre state handouts. Nobody is allowed to leave and no one can enter. However, there are always a few exceptions as photographer Olivier Mirguet found.