It’s becoming unlikely Pyongyang will meet a weekend deadline to shut down it’s main nuclear reactor.

The North Korean Government says it is waiting to confirm if accounts frozen by United States sanctions are now free to access before they close the site.

A Dispute over 25 million dollars in a Macau Bank has stalled disarmament talks for over a year- and the nuclear standoff is frustrating for North Korean defectors living in the south.

Through a short wave radio station, some of these defectors are trying to bring about the downfall of the Kim Long Ill regime; not through violence but by teaching North Koreans what democracy means.

Rebecca Henschke paid the controversial station a visit.

‘For freedom, democracy and reunification'’- this is the catchphrase of Free North Korea Radio, an internet and short-wave station based in Seoul.

Today’s program starts with the latest news and then a lecture by Dr Hwang Jang Yeop, the highest-ranking defector living in Seoul.
Then a warning message to the perpetrators of the dictatorship in North Korea.

After that it’s back to something lighter: a casual chat between South and North Koreans about the differences in what they do for night time entertainment.

“This is a program called ‘real talk’. The defectors from the North, and South Korean young people, get together and talk about the differences in daily life,”

That’s Se-Jong one of three South Koreans working at the station alongside seven North Korean defectors.

She was inspired to work here six months ago after meeting a defector and hearing her stories.

“It was an awakening moment for me, that this is not someone else’s problem, it’s not the United States problem or the United Nations; it’s our problem and frankly most people my age don’t care at all about the North Korean issue. But I believe in the power of democracy and freedom and I think giving them information from the outside world is important, because some of the propaganda that I hear is just ridiculous and I can see that there are so many lies,”

The station broadcasts for one hour a day via shortwave into North Korea.

Kisung Kim one of the editors says they are broadcasting messages of freedom and democracy to bring about a change of regime.

The former job of the founder of the station, Sung Min Kim, was to monitor foreign broadcasts for the North Korean military.

It was through listening to the news that he realized he had been fed many lies and decided to defect.

Kisung Kim had a similar experience and says radio is a very powerful medium.

“Change will only come in North Korea if the minds of the people are opened up. If I say we are trying to create a revolution then that is not democracy but we are trying to open up people’s minds so that they can think for themselves then it will be harder for Kim Jong-il to hold absolute power and there will be checks and balances and ultimately the collapse of this regime,”

However, it’s an unsettling message for many South Koreans and clashing with the Roh Government’s engagement, or so-called ‘Sunshine’ policy.
The Grand National Opposition party also believes that the ‘ultimate nightmare’ for the South is the sudden collapse of the North Korean regime.

I fear that. That’s the terrible scenario. If the North Korean regime collapses suddenly there will be turmoil and lots of refugees will try to flow into South Korea and our burden will rise dramatically. The sudden collapse must be avoided.

Kisung Kim says because of this political climate many in Seoul would like to see Free North Korea Radio shut down.

Over lunch they talk about the threats they have received. Just a week after Se-Jong started working here, a box was delivered to the office with the Station Director’s face crossed out with red paint.

Critics get physical, too. A guard at the building says ’strange people’ come to protest regularly.

Two police have been assigned to monitor the station 24 hours a day. They are not sure if they are there to spy on them or protect them, the staff joke.

A South Korean group called the 6.15 Unification Alliance has been one of the station’s most vocal critics.

They claim Free North Korea Radio is running counter to the current mood of intra-Korean reconciliation and cooperation.It also breaks an agreement between North and South to stop slanderous broadcasts.

Despite the pressure FNK Radio is not going anywhere. Kisung Kim believes passionately that they are not provoking war but leading their people to freedom.

“The Sunshine policy has only supported and prolonged the Kim Jong-il regime and made defectors lives harder. The South should listen to the North Korean defectors. We are the only ones that really know what needs to be done to help our people; the Sunshine policy is not helping them. Opening up information channels and telling them about an alternative life will!”

Unlike most the World’s leaders he is not optimistic about the current progress in the six-nation talks or the warming relations between the North and America.

“No way, not at all optimistic. The talks between the United States and the North are just a game between Bush and Kim Jong-il to get more time, they both need more time. Bush needs to look like he is achieving something to win support at home and the talks between the South and the North are also a game; the Roh Government is also only thinking about winning the next election. Kim Jong-il is just using the nuclear card to blackmail the world and get what he wants,”

So this station has a lot of work to do, he adds.

They plan to start broadcasting two hours next month and have been boosted by reports from new defectors that they heard the program while inside North Korea.

The Station survives though funding from the National Endowment for Democracy in the United States and individual donations.