17. The Chongryun Organization

“How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land?”

Psalm 137:4

At the center of North Korean society in Japan stands a powerful organization known as Chongryun — the “Korean General Residents Association of Japan.” Chongryun exists to promote the policies of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK, North Korea). It encourages loyalty to Kim Jong-Il, spreads Juche ideology, solicits finances and technology for the North, and serves as the DPRK’s unofficial embassy. Its top leaders also sit as members of North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly. While it may appear to be out of place in Tokyo, Japan’s democratic society has allowed Chongryun to function for 50 years.

Most of the 200,000 pro-DPRK Koreans in Japan have something to do with this communist organization. Chongryun operates through numerous financial, corporate, social, science and legal networks. It operates a banking industry that loans money when Japanese banks refuse. Trade organizations help members find jobs and wedding bureaus help arrange marriages. Perhaps most importantly, Chongryun administrates a system of over one hundred pro-Pyongyang schools in Japan, educating Korean youth and planting in them a love for the fatherland. Through all this, Chongryun maintains a small piece of North Korean society within Japan.

Recently, however, the pro-DPRK Korean community’s loyalty to Chongryun has changed. Various current events have made these Koreans in Japan think twice about Chongryun. Members have become less involved with the group, refusing to pay dues or withdrawing their children from Chongryun schools. Some have openly called for reform; the organization has not been pleased with this. Meanwhile, the group has begun slowly changing its image in order to reach a new generation. As these Koreans begin seeking a new ideology, how will they find Christ in Japan, a nation which is itself not even one percent Christian? (33)

• Praise God that Koreans in Japan have free access to information and even churches.

• Ask God to raise up missionaries who understand the complexities of this diaspora community.

• Pray that these Koreans will find salvation and a new identity in Christ.