How far is the North Korean government willing to go to control its population? On Thursday, June 27, 2024, the South Korean Ministry of Unification released its new report on human rights in North Korea. According to this document relayed by The Guardiana 22-year-old North Korean man was reportedly publicly executed for watching South Korean films and listening to K-pop.
The events allegedly occurred in 2022. According to an anonymous testimony transcribed in the report, the victim was a resident of South Hwanghae Province. Accused of listening to 70 South Korean songs, watching three films and relaying foreign media in violation of North Korean law prohibiting “reactionary acts”, the young man was reportedly sentenced and put to death in front of his fellow citizens.
Hundreds of testimonies
In this document, 649 North Korean defectors recount the colossal efforts made by Pyongyang to try to stem the flow of external information and culture. In the crosshairs of the North Korean authorities: the younger generation.
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Bans on wearing sunglasses, white dresses for brides or drinking alcohol in wine glasses… The testimonies are unanimous: in North Korea, everything that relates to South Korean customs is prohibited and severely punished.
According to the 2024 report, North Korean authorities regularly inspect mobile phones to check the expressions used or the spelling of the names of registered contacts. Their goal? To combat influence “malignant” of Western culture to better control the population. Begun under the Kim Jong-il era, this repressive policy has considerably intensified under the reign of his son Kim Jong-un.
“I would rather die”
Through these dissuasive measures, the 40-year-old dictator intends to remind his people that he demands unwavering loyalty from them. According to some accounts, however, the influence of South Korean culture seems unstoppable. “South Korean culture is influencing North Korea at a lightning speed. Young people are following and copying South Korean culture, and they really like everything South Korean.”said a woman who fled North Korea last October.
“After watching Korean dramas, many young people wonder: “Why do we have to live like this?” “I would rather die than live in North Korea again”continued this twenty-year-old defector who left her country on board a wooden boat. And she concluded: “Of course, we cannot say anything bad against Kim Jong-un in public, but among close friends or family members, we say these words.”
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