North Korea
Japan tried to suppress Korean traditions and culture and ran the economy primarily for its own benefit. Korean resistance groups known as Dongnipgun (Liberation Army) operated along the Sino-Korean border, fighting guerrilla warfare against Japanese forces. Some of them took part in allied action in China and parts of South East Asia. One of the guerrilla leaders was the communist Kim Il-sung, who later became the first leader of North Korea.
Kim dynasty (North Korea)
Unlike governance in all other socialist countries, North Korea's governance is comparable to a royal family. The Kim dynasty has ruled North Korea since 1948 for three generations, and still little about the family is publicly confirmed. Kim Il-sung rebelled against Japan's rule of Korea in the 1930s, which led to his exile in the Soviet Union. Korea was divided after Japan's defeat in World War II. Kim came to lead the Soviet-backed North's provisional government, becoming the first premier of its new government, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (commonly known as North Korea), in 1948. He started the Korean War in 1950 with hopes to reunify the region.