 a program begun in December 1959 by Kim Il Sung to repatriate Korean nationals living in Japan.
The move to North Korea was for more than simply economic reasons.
As part of a plan to host an international sports event for newly developing nations, Kim Il Sung wanted to create a judo association in North Korea. As far as he was concerned, the man for the job was Ko.
A former high-ranking official of the Pyongyang-affiliated General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon) said, "(Two officials) of a sports association affiliated with Chongryon in Osaka were given instructions, and they approached Ko and asked him to return to North Korea."
Although Ko was only a minor pro wrestler in Japan, his move to North Korea would eventually lead to him being referred to as the father of North Korean judo.
Another Korean national who also moved to North Korea learned judo from Ko and would later flee the North for South Korea.
The individual once said, "Those who built the foundation of North Korean judo were all Korean nationals who moved from Japan. Ko's daughter, Young Hee, resembled her mother and was slim and very pretty. She would often visit the judo hall."
Having become the daughter of an influential figure in North Korean judo, Young Hee in around 1970 joined the Mansudae Art Troupe as a dancer.
It was there that she caught the roving eye of Kim Jong Il. While Korean nationals who returned to North Korea from Japan were often discriminated against, Young Hee experienced a Cinderella story of sorts.
In 1973, she came to Japan as the lead dancer of the Mansudae Art Troupe.
Ko Young Hee performing with the Mansudae Art Troupe
An individual with ties to Korean nationals said, "Her visit to Japan was a present from Kim Jong Il. He basically told her to go to the Japan of her birth and buy whatever she wanted. She was treated very specially and those around her were very nervous about not upsetting her."
Ko Tae Mun died in Pyongyang in 1980. Ko Young Hee gave birth to three children. She died of cancer in 2004, having reached the pinnacle of North Korean society.
North Korea will likely make a huge effort to create a revolutionary legend around Jong Un. People in the Korean community in Japan are in agreement that little mention, if any, will be made of Tsuruhashi, or the ties to the district of both his mother and her family.
The history of the family in Japan, including Ko Tae Mun's failure as a pro wrestler, does not have the makings of a good legend, they say.
What could be included in the legend is the fact that Ko Tae Mun was born in Jeju. In 1948, islanders clashed with the right-wing South Korean authorities. The conflict resulted in numerous fatalities, and some islanders fled to Japan.
In around 2003, a TV drama about the incident was broadcast in North Korea. That was at a time when Ko Young Hee's political influence was growing.
A former high-ranking Chongryon official said a legend about Kim Jong Un could be created along the following story line:
"Ko Tae Mun carried on the will of Jeju islanders who fought bravely under the guidance of Kim Il Sung. After fleeing to Japan, he returned to North Korea to be embraced by the greatness of Kim. Ko gave up his life to serve as a soldier for Kim. Kim Jong Un would be an individual who carried on the great revolutionary bloodline from Jeju."
Tsuruhashi would have no place within that legend.
A source in the Korean community in Japan said, "Ko Tae Mun's relatives still live in Osaka. They are not involved with Chongryon. Even if you talked to them, they will tell you nothing. They have been told to keep quiet by North Korea."
This article appeared in the Asahi Shimbun Weekly Area on December 1, 2010.
Ko Young Hee and the “Repatriation” of Ethnic Koreans from Japan to North Korea
The story of Ko Young Hee is an intriguing and little known part of the history of the mass “repatriation” of ethnic Koreans from Japan to North Korea. Ko Young Hee and her family were among 93,340 people (most of them ethnic Koreans) who were relocated from Japan to the Democratic People