The Kippumjo or Gippeumjo translated variously as Pleasure Group , Pleasure Groups , Pleasure Squad , Pleasure Brigade , or Joy Division is an alleged collection of groups of approximately 2, women and girls that is maintained by the leader of North Korea for the purpose of providing pleasure, mostly of a sexual nature, and entertainment for high-ranking Workers' Party of Korea WPK officials and their families, as well as occasionally distinguished guests.
The South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo said that the group that used to perform for Kim Jong-un 's father, Kim Jong-il , was disbanded shortly after the elder Kim's death in December The members supposedly were made to sign a pledge of secrecy in exchange for money and gifts. The girls in the squad would also receive compensation in the form of home appliances. Little is known outside North Korea about the Gippeumjo , but information has gradually emerged through the testimony of North Koreans who have defected , particularly Kenji Fujimoto and Mi Hyang.
The first two syllables of the name, gippeum , is a native Korean word meaning joy or happiness. Kim Il-sung is believed to have established this corps of women in the belief that having sexual relations with young women would increase his jing and have the effect of enhancing his life force , or gi hangul: The Gippeumjo were reported to have been established in , during the administration of Kim Il-sung.
In the recruiting and training of Gippeumjo were administered by the Fifth Department of Staff of the Organic Direction of the Party. In April , Kim Jong-un was reportedly seeking new members for his own Gippeumjo , after his father's group of girls was disbanded in December Girls from throughout the country are recruited to be Gippeumjo members according to government criteria [8] one of which is that they must be virgins [9].
After being selected, they undergo a rigorous training period, with some Haengbokjo members being sent overseas for massage training. Gippeumjo members typically leave at age 22 or At that time they are often married to members of North Korea's elite—and are also sometimes paired off with military officers seeking wives—and their former membership in the Gippeumjo is kept secret.
