US News & World Report has an interview with the Seoul-based head of World Vision and his efforts to help feed people in North Korea. It's a somewhat interesting read because he does go into detail about changes he sees in the lives of North Koreans.
But with so many critics of South Korea painting the ROK into a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don't corner, I also started wondering what side the critics would say Mr. Oh Jae-shik is on.
Is he a true defender of the North Korean people, helping them get fed when their own vicious government has left them to die? Or are his efforts helping prop up the regime in Pyongyang? Is he a symbol of South Koreans who are concerned about the dignity of people stuck within the DPRK, or is he a symbol of South Koreans willing to make deals with the devil to keep the North from imploding?
If he were based in Los Angeles, New York City, Washington, or Tokyo, would I be asking this question? Would the answers be any clearer?
I'm guessing time will answer those questions. Meanwhile, any help the folks up North can get is OK in my book.
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