ABSTRACT
The Korean peninsula is dominated by two strong personalities, Kim Il-sung in the north and Park Chung-hee in the south. The North Korean regime was established officially under the patronship of the Soviet Union on September 9, 1948. Kim Il-sung immediately became premier and began the long-term process of power consolidation and elimination of potential political rivals. The authoritarian regimes of North Korea and South Korea offer interesting examples of alternative developmental models for other Third World nations to emulate. North Korea is a unitary state. Basically all governmental functions are accomplished or initiated from the capital, P’yongyang. On the local level North Korea’s unitary system closely monitors the progress of government in 9 provinces, 2 cities with provincial equivalent status, 18 regular cities, 36 urban districts, and 151 counties. Although a governmental structure exists, as in most communist states real political control and activity rests in the hands of the state communist party.
