“Monitor him closely at all times and, if his ideology seems suspect, kill him without mercy.”
Lim Ji-rok
협상을 하러 온 거이 아니오. 해명을 들으러 왔소. 우리 공작원들을 추격한 거이 안기부 요원이라는 게 사실이오? (…) 실패의 책임은 전부 남조선에 있소! 대선은 알아서 치르게 될 거요!
“We haven’t come to negotiate. We’ve come to hear an explanation. Is it true the one who pursued our operatives was an ANSP agent? (…) The responsibility for this failure rests wholly on South Korea! You’ll have to carry out the election by yourselves!”
[n.b. Needless to say, both Lim Ji-rok and Choi Soo-ryeon speak in pronounced Northern dialect, but I’m not attempting to map that onto any existing dialect of English, for hopefully obvious reasons.]
~ EP03
수혁아. 이번 임무는 불피코 완수해야 한다. (…) 백두산 줄기란 리유만으로 힘을 쥔 것들이 아바니 명치 끝을 게누고 있어. 니가 놈들을 죽일 아바니의 마지막 병기란 사실 잊디 말라우.
“Soo-hyuk-ah. You must accomplish this mission at all costs. (…) Those who hold power simply because they’re of the Baekdusan line are gunning for me. Don’t forget that you’re my final weapon with which to kill the bastards.”
[n.b. Lim Soo-hyuk = Im Soo-ho. There’s a saying that if you’re to live well in the North, you have to come from one of three lines and, of these, the Baekdusan line has long been associated with political power. Ji-rok also uses the Northern dialect word for ‘father’ (아바니) here to refer to himself (i.e. for ‘me/my’).]
~ EP04
내 뭐라 했소? 내 아들은 반드시 살아 있을 거이라 하디 않았소? (…) 이번 작전은 계획대로 내 아들이 완수할 거요. (…) 부부장 동무가 투입한 공작조는 내 아들을 도와 임무를 완수할 거요. 남조선과의 협상에 동무는 더 이상 관여하디 마시오.
“What’d I tell you? Didn’t I say my son would surely be alive? (…) My son will complete this mission as planned. (…) The op-team you’ve sent in will aid my son in accomplishing his mission. Don’t involve yourself in the negotiations with South Korea any further, comrade.”
[n.b. ‘you’ = ‘Comrade Deputy Director’]
~ EP04
계약금을 인수하는 대로 위대한 수령 동지에서 하사하신 당 자금으로 야당이 선거를 치르고 있다는 기자 회견을 한 교수가 하게 만들 거요. (…) 선거 끝나면 마음 편히 놀러 오시라요. 그 자리에 오래 앉으려면은 공화국을 한 번 다녀가는 거이 좋지 않겠어?
“As soon as we’ve received the down payment, I’ll have Professor Han state at a press conference that the opposition party is carrying out the election with Party funds bestowed by Comrade Supreme Leader. (…) When the election is over, come and visit with an easy mind. If you’re to hold that position for long, wouldn’t it be good to visit the Republic once?”
[n.b. Comrade Supreme Leader = Kim Il-sung]
~ EP05
뭐야? 아, 도대체 뭐 하자는 거야, 매번! 드보크에서 무기를 가지고 합류할 예정이었는데. 남조선 아이들이 쫓은 거 아니야? 왜 자꾸 일을 이따위로 해! (…) 이봐, 은 부장! 적반하장도 유분수지. 어디서 큰소리를 쳐! 우리 공작원들 머리털 한 오래기라도 건드렸다간 선거고 나발이고 작전 무효야! 대동강 1호를 안전하게 빼내서 당신 책임하에 당장 북송시켜! 우리한테는 남조선 대통령보다도 더 중요한 동무니까네! 알갔어?
“What? Just what is it you’re trying to do, time and again?! He was supposed to have retrieved the weapons from the dvoke and rendezvoused [with the rest]. Did your boys chase him? Why do you keep botching things up! (…) Now see here, Director Eun! Don’t blame me, when you’re at fault!* Where do you get off talking big?! Touch even one hair on our operatives’ heads and you can forget the election or what have you; the op will be off! Extract Daedong-gang 1 safely and see to it he’s returned North immediately! Since to us, he’s a comrade more important than the South Korean president! Got that?”
[n.b. A ‘dvoke’ (드보크) is a stash of weapons and other espionage equipment used by North Korean operatives deployed to South Korea/North Korean sleeper agents stationed in the South. The term is supposedly borrowed from Russian, which makes sense, given that North Korea was administered by the Soviet Union from 1945-1948. In Russian, the word ‘duboke’ (дубоке) means ‘deep,’ but the etymology explanation I found claims that the word was derived from the Russian for oak, ‘dub’ (дуб), because marked oak trees were used as dead-drops in Siberia during WWII. *The phrase here (賊反荷杖도 有分數지), more literally, means something like ‘there is a limit to a thief carrying a rod’ i.e. someone who is in the wrong attacking someone innocent.]
~ EP05
공작원 셋만? 우리 공작원들 털 오래기 하나 건드리지 말고 당장 북송시키라우! 안 그랬다간 전쟁이야! 전쟁!
“‘Just three operatives’? Don’t touch a hair on our operatives’ heads and send them North immediately! Or it will be war! War!”
~ EP07
림지록: 언제 우리가 남측과 합의한 대로 움직였소? 거기다가 남측의 목적은 대선 승리지 인질 구출이 아니지 않소?
최수련: 부장 동지가 아들 때문에 혁명적인 판단을 하기 어려울 거라고 당에 보고를 했소.
림지록: 뭐야? 남조선 대선 전까진 내가 통전부장이야! 당의 결정을..!Ji-rok: When have we ever acted as agreed upon with the South? What’s more, the South’s objective is winning the presidential election, not rescuing the hostages, isn’t it?
Soo-ryeon: I’ve reported to the Party that you’ll have difficulty making Revolutionary* decisions due to your son.
Ji-rok: What? I’m the UFD director until the South Korean election! The Party decided–![*i.e. decisions that further the cause of the North Korean People’s Democratic Revolution (인민민주주의 혁명).]
~ EP10
피는 못 속인다더니 역시 반동분자의 자식답군.
And they say you can’t disguise blood.* As expected of the son of a reactionary.
[*i.e. ‘The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,’ since Soo-ho’s father was accused of being a political dissenter.]
~ EP12
기숙사에 인질로 잡혀 있는 당신 부하가 끝끝내 훼방을 놓는구먼. 림수호를 포섭해서 기숙사를 해방구로 만든 모양이오. (…) 걔네 둘이 손을 잡고 대선 공작을 깨부수려는 모양이오. 이미 파괴 작전을 개시했다는 무전을 받았소.
“Your subordinate who’s been taken hostage in the dormitory is interfering to the very last, I see. It seems he’s won Lim Soo-ho over and made the dormitory into an asylum.* (…) It seems they’ve joined hands and are trying to ruin the presidential election op. I received a radio transmission that they’ve already begun a sabotage operation.”
[*Literally: ‘a liberated precinct’ i.e. one under independent/rebel control; in practice, often a haven or asylum.]
~ EP12
보고서: 대동강1호 | 1987년12월9일 16:15 | 림수호 단독변절. 수희 생존보장 바람. 수희 신상이상시 모란봉1호 안위보장 못함.
림지록: 이 종간나 새끼가 지금 날 협박하는 거이가? (…) 이 림지록이 하룻강아지한테 끌려다니믄 되갔어? 기숙사에 있는 해금성 1호한테 전하라우. 안기부가 실패 시 변절자들을 죽이고 평양으로 복귀하라고.Report: Daedong-gang 1 | 9 December 1987 16:15 | Lim Soo-ho solo defection. Request guarantee of Soo-hee’s survival. In event of [vital] status change, Moran-bong 1’s safety cannot be guaranteed.
~ EP12
Ji-rok: Is this bloody son of a cur threatening me right now? (…) Could I, Lim Ji-rok, let a day-old pup lead me around by my nose? Convey this to Haegeum-seong 1 inside the dormitory: should the ANSP fail, kill the traitors and return home to Pyongyang.
날 철직을 시키지 못해 안달인 모양이지? 떠나기 전에 선물 하나 주고 가면 피차 계산이 끝나겠지? (…) 난 이 그림을 볼 때마다 최수련 동무 생각을 하디. 자식을 잡아먹는 그, 뭐라더라? 최 동무가 죽이란 명령을 내린 림수호 내가 18년 전에 길거리에서 주웠디. 다 죽어 가는 그놈 누이와 함께. 그놈이 누군지 알겠어? 최 동무가 출세를 위해 버린 아들 리태산이야. 아들 살리고 싶으믄 날 절대 이길 생각 추호도 말라. 기숙사에 해금성이 있어서 내 말 한마디면은 니 아들 죽이는 거 식은 죽 먹기디.
“It seems you’re just desperate to get me fired, eh? If I give you a gift before I go, the score between us will be settled, right? (…) I think of you, Comrade Choi Soo-ryeon, every time I see this painting. The — what was it called? — that devours his child. I picked up the Lim Soo-ho you ordered killed off the street eighteen years ago. Along with his half-dead sister. Do you know who he is? Li Tae-san, the son you abandoned for the sake of advancement. If you want to save your son’s life, don’t even think of ousting me. Haegeum-seong is inside the dormitory, so one word from me and killing your son will be duck soup.”
[n.b. ‘you’ = ‘Comrade Choi’; the painting is Goya’s Saturn Devouring His Son. The idiom I’ve rendered as ‘duck soup’ is literally ‘eating cold porridge’ i.e. a piece of cake.]
~ EP15
그러게. 내 인생 최고의 실수는 너를 인간으로 본 거였어. 동무가 하자는 대로 해금성에게 무전을 쳤디. 곧 림수호가 죽을 거야.
“I know. The greatest mistake of my life was having taken you for a human being. I did as you suggested, comrade, and radioed Haegeum-seong. Lim Soo-ho will soon die.”
~ EP15
Choi Soo-ryeon
섣불리 움직였다간 동무도 다쳐. 사흘만 기다리라. 이 시간부터 정확히 72시간 안에 생사 확인 안 되면 규정대로 움직이라.
“Act hastily and you’ll get burned too, comrade. Wait just three days. If you can’t confirm whether he’s alive or dead by exactly 72 hours from now, follow protocol.”
~ EP03
항상 놈을 집중 감시하다가 사상성이 의심되면 가차 없이 죽이라.
“Monitor him closely at all times and, if his ideology seems suspect, kill him without mercy.”
[n.b. The word I have as ‘ideology’ is ‘sasangseong’ (思想性) which, here, refers to his ideological commitment to the communist cause/revolution.]
~ EP04
불가능할 걸 알면서도 시간을 벌자는 심산인데. 천하의 림지록이도 지 새끼 앞에선 별수 없군.
He’s intending to buy time despite knowing it’ll be impossible. Even the almighty Lim Ji-rok is helpless when it comes to his child.
~ EP07
나 국가보위부 부부장 최수련이오. 이제부터 협상은 나와 진행하시오. 우리 공작원들은 당을 위해 죽는 걸 영광으로 알 거요. 사살하시오.
“I’m Deputy Director of the State Security Agency,* Choi Soo-ryeon. From now on, conduct the negotiations with me. Our operatives will consider it an honour to die for the Party’s sake. Kill them.”
[*n.b. North Korea’s secret police agency; a precursor to the modern Ministry of State Security (국가보위성).]
~ EP07
최수련: 부장 동지가 아들 때문에 혁명적인 판단을 하기 어려울 거라고 당에 보고를 했소. (…) 소련 동구 사회주의권이 위기인 상황에서 이 협상이 잘못되면 우리 당이 체제적으로 힘들어질 수 있다는 거 모르시오? 통전부장을 림지록 동지가 대선 전까지 맡으시되 실무적인 책임은 내가 맡습니다. 그게 당의 결정이오, 아시갔소? 아들 걱정은 하디 마시오. 조국을 위해서 장렬히 산화하면 공화국 영웅 칭호를 받을 거 아니오. 아들이 영웅 칭호를 받으면 금번 임무를 완수하지 못한 부장 동지가 면책될 텐데 기쁘디 아니하오?
림지록: 자식을 죽여 면책의 기쁨을 누려라. 기숙사에 갇힌 공작원이 당신의 아들이라 해도 그런 결정을 내리갔소?
최수련: 물론이오. 존엄 높은 주체 조선의 혁명 전사로서 그보다 더 영예로운 죽음이 어디 있갔소?Soo-ryeon: I’ve reported to the Party that you’ll have difficulty making Revolutionary* decisions due to your son. (…) Don’t you know that, with the Eastern European Communist Bloc in crisis, our Party will be systemically destabilised if the negotiations fail? Comrade Lim Ji-rok, you’ll be in charge of the UFD until the presidential election, but I will handle all practical responsibilities. That is the Party’s decision, understand? Don’t worry for your son. If he dies heroically for the sake of the homeland, he’ll be named a Hero of the Republic. If your son is named a Hero of the Republic, you, who failed to accomplish this mission, will not be held accountable–are you not pleased?
Ji-rok: ‘Kill your child and enjoy immunity.’ Could you make the same call if one of the operatives trapped inside the dormitory was your son?
Soo-ryeon: Of course. Could there be a more heroic death for a revolutionary warrior of the Glorious Juche Korea?[*i.e. decisions that further the cause of the North Korean People’s Democratic Revolution (인민민주주의 혁명); ‘you’ = ‘Comrade Director’; n.b. What I have as ‘Juche Korea’ is technically ‘Juche Joseon’ (主體朝鮮).]
~ EP10
대동강 1호한테 무전 치라. 모란봉 1호의 보안 조치를 위해 남조선 대통령 선거 전날 인질들을 싹 다 죽이라고.
“Radio Daedong-gang 1. Tell him to kill all the hostages the day before the South Korean presidential election in order to safeguard Moran-bong 1[’s identity].”
~ EP10
당신 부하가 발목 잡는 바람에 우리 공작원들만 죽고 일이 더 복잡해졌어. 따지고 보면 당신이 당신 부하 하나 단도리 못 해서 일이 이 지경이 된 거 아니오? 사흘 안에 3억 달러를 보내지 않으믄 당신 딸부터 사살될 거요.
“Since your subordinate got in the way, only our operatives have died and things have become more complicated. If we’re to quibble about it, isn’t it because you couldn’t manage one of your own subordinates that things have come to this? If you don’t send us the 300 million dollars within three days, your daughter will be the first one killed.”
~ EP11
지 아비 줄로 당의 명령을 어기고도 살아남은 놈이야. 명심하라. 림수혁은 언제든지 반역자가 될 놈이다. 항상 놈을 집중 감시하다가 사상성이 의심되면 죽이라.
“He’s a bastard that’s survived despite disobeying the Party’s commands by virtue of being from his father’s line. Bear in mind: Lim Soo-hyuk could turn traitor at any time. Monitor him closely at all times and, if his ideology seems suspect, kill him without mercy.”
[n.b. Lim Soo-hyuk = Im Soo-ho]
~ EP12
은창수 안기부장 일은 유감이오. 따지고 보면 당신네 부하가 우리 공작원을 포섭해 일을 그리 맨든 거니 당신들 책임도 없다 하디 못할 거요. (…) 인질극을 더 끌었다간 안 될 거 같아서 특단의 조치를 내렸소. 오늘 자정까지 인질들과 함께 자폭하디 않음 지 동생을 죽이겠다는 지령을 내렸으니까니 믿고 기다려 보시라요. 사상성이 개떡 같은 놈이긴 해도, 지 피붙이에 대한 정은 지극할 테니 자폭하고 말 거요. 자폭하는 즉시, 3억 달러나 차질 없이 보내시오.
“What happened to ANSP Director Eun Chang-soo is regrettable. When it comes down to it, your subordinate brought it on by winning our operative over to his side, so you can’t claim lack of responsibility, either. (…) It seems we shouldn’t drag the hostage situation out longer, so I’ve taken special measures. I handed down the directive that if they don’t blow themselves up by midnight tonight, we’ll kill his younger sister, so trust in that and wait. His ideology might be rubbish but his love for his own blood is exceptional so he’ll have no choice but to blow himself up. As soon as they do, send us the 300 million dollars as planned.”
[n.b. Again, ‘ideology’ here refers to his ideological commitment to the communist cause/revolution.]
~ EP14
남쪽에서 우리한테 보내야 할 돈을 모란봉 1호가 가로챘답니다. 안기부에 정체도 발각됐고요. 강청야가 당성이 뛰어나다고? 당신 아들도 우릴 엿 멕이더니, 강청야까지? 수령님께 바쳐야 할 당 자금에 차질이 생기면 당신 책임이야. 당장 청천강한테 림수호 죽이라고 무전 치라. 그 새끼를 죽이면 청천강 가족의 안전은 보장한다고. 당장!
“I’m told Moran-bong 1 intercepted the money the South was supposed to send us. And that her identity has been exposed to the ANSP. You said Kang Cheong-ya’s commitment to the Party was exceptional? Your son also screwed us over, and now even Kang Cheong-ya has? If there’s a setback in obtaining the funds that we’re to offer up to the Supreme Leader, it will be on your head. Radio Cheongcheon-gang to kill Lim Soo-ho at once. Tell him that if he kills that son of a cur, we’ll guarantee the safety of his family. Right now!”
[n.b. Cheongcheon-gang = Joo Gyeok-chan]
~ EP14
림수호 제거.
Eliminate Lim Soo-ho.
~ EP15
당장 해금성한테 무전 쳐. 가차 없이 림수호를 죽이라고. 뭘 착각하는 모양인데, 내 아들 리태산은 18년 전에 죽었어. 수령님을 결사 옹위 하기 위해서 반동분자인 남편을 버리면서 자식들까지 도려냈으니까. 엄연히 림수호는 당신 아들이야. 당신 새끼라고. 조국을 배신하고, 강청야와 함께 당 자금 3억 달러를 가로채는 데 앞장선 반동분자. 림수호 아비인 당신이 전적으로 이 사태의 책임을 져야 하는 거디.
“Radio Haegeum-seong at once. Tell him to kill Lim Soo-ho without mercy. It seems you’re under a misapprehension, but my son, Li Tae-san, died eighteen years ago. Since I discarded my reactionary husband and even cut off* my children for the sake of defending the Supreme Leader at all costs. Lim Soo-ho is undoubtedly your son. He’s your child. A reactionary who betrayed the homeland and spearheaded the effort to intercept 300 million dollars of the Party’s funds with Kang Cheong-ya. Which means that you, as his father, will have to take full responsibility for this state of affairs.”
[*n.b. The word she uses here literally means something like ‘to gouge out/scrape off’ as one would a piece of rotten meat, for example. As though, since her husband was labelled a political dissenter, she considers their children ‘contaminated’ as well.]
~ EP15
최수련입니다. ...알갔습니다. 당장 림지록을 체포해.
“This is Choi Soo-ryeon. ...Understood. Arrest Lim Ji-rok at once.”
~ EP15
이제부터 니 엄마는 내가 아니라 당이야. 로동당. 최수련. 그 이름은 잊어. 알갔니?
“From now on, your mother isn’t me but the Party. The Workers’ Party. ‘Choi Soo-ryeon.’ Forget that name. Got it?”
[n.b. The Workers’ Party (WPK) is the sole ruling party of the DPRK.]
~ EP15
날 죽이자고, 길바닥에서 주운 앨 잘 드는 칼로 만들었는데, 어쩌지? 찔러도 피 한 방울 안 나오니 말이야.
“In order to kill me, you forged a child you picked up off the streets into a keen blade, but what to do? Since I don’t bleed so much as a drop of blood even when stabbed.”
[n.b. In Korean, someone who is utterly heartless is said to have ‘neither blood nor tears’ or to ‘not bleed even when stabbed.’]
~ EP15
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