>>> north korea tonight has the attention of much of the world. that's because they are preparing to launch a mistal in a dangerous neighborhood and the u.s. and others fear what it might mean and what might come next. our chief foreign correspondent richard engle has been granted unusual access inside korea. he's been able to join us tonight from the chinese capital . richard , good evening.
>> good evening, brian. in addition to that rocket test, there are also reports coming from south korea that this country could be preparing for an underground nuclear test , and u.s. officials say it is possible. this rocket is poised for launch, north korea says, to carry a satellite into orbit. but u.s. officials worry it could easily be converted into an intercontinental ballistic missile that could reach the united states . the standoff comes just as this secretive isolated country has allowed outsiders, journalists in for a closer look. in one of peaung yangs squares today, we saw up to 100,000 people express devote to kim jong -il. the control of this society was immediately apparent. people stood in rows at attention. applauded on cue. and waved pom-poms in a shimmering sea of pink. nort korea's vision of a patriotic utopia. this is an important period for north korea , and over the next two weeks, there will be a series of festivals, parades, and massive assemblies like this one. it's all designed to show national unity and political stability after the death of kim jong -il late last year. the pageantry also has a purpose. it re-enforces the cultive personality around the kim jong -il family and passes it on to his son, the new ruler, kim jaung un. strikingly, when the assembly was over, the school children in pressed uniforms, families, and workers simply left. no trash left behind . they were gone in minutes. thousands of others went to a nearby park. it's also part of the kim family worship, built around the family home of kim jong -il's father. this woman earned her scholarship in a department dedicated to their study.
>> you think it's a good system for the people of north korea ?
>> yeah. everybody that understands and they uphold the line.
>> this weekend, journalists were taken by teams of minders on a luxury train to a military base . a shocking contrast to the barren fields we passed. we saw few tractors, mostly farmers with hand tools. people here are starving. we arrived at the base to see the satellite north korea says it will soon put into orbit, carried by that controversial rocket on the launch pad . north korea says it is going ahead with the launch. a show of strength and determination to preserve this secretive dinacy. this is the first time journalists have been allowed into north korea since kim jaung un came into power, and all of the political theater , some of it quite provocative, seems designed to help ease the succession.
>> richard engle in north korea for us. richard , thank you.
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