In 1958, Prime Minister Kim Il Sung announced “Intensive Guidance by the Central Party.” Every Korean—every single one—was put through a series of background checks. Not one, not two, but eight such checks were held in total. Everything was taken into account—family origin, political activity, expressions of loyalty—and families were rated accordingly, down to the second cousins. The background checks the Party performed were so thorough that having a relative in south Korea or a landlord for a grandparent was enough to designate a given person was unreliable.
