In a recent report released by Amnesty International, the severity of consuming South Korean movies, songs, and web series in North Korea is highlighted. Amnesty International UK has interviewed North Korean citizens who fled the country and found out about the arbitrary and corrupt system regulated by the wealthy and influential people. According to many who flew the country between 2012 and 2019, before the border became more secure due to COVID-19, they have told about the harsh punishments and executions faced by the people who consume K-pop music, K-drama, foreign television shows, and more.
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Anti-Reactionary Thought and Culture Act
North Korea implemented the Anti-Reactionary Thought and Culture Act in 2020 to prevent North Korean citizens from watching alien content and entertainment shows. The reasoning was to maintain revolutionary fire inside the people’s heads, and consumption of such content makes them weaker and ruins their revolutionary thoughts. The punishment ranges from 15 years of rigorous forced labour to public execution for watching, distributing, and forming group viewings.
However, the Anti-Reactionary Thought and Culture Act 2020 is generally misused by the authorities as a result of its vaguely worded provisions and sections. The law criminalizes the consumption of South Korean media and empowers public authorities to check and punish individuals watching or storing any of the South Korean movies or Foreign TV shows. The established system has bred corruption in a slew of repression. Testimonies justified that if you have money or connections, you can escape the worst penalties.
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Occasional Crackdown and 109 Group
There are instances when money and power do not protect against the alleged violation of the Anti-Reactionary Thought and Culture Act 2020. It is probably due to the Korean Premier, Kim Jong Un, ordering an intensive crackdown against the people who consume and possess South Korean content. During this time, money and connections become powerless, and no one can protect you from penalties, forced labour, and re-education camps. One of the interviewees said in a statement, Workers watch it openly, party officials watch it proudly, security agents watch it secretly, and police watch it safely. Everyone knows everyone watches, including those who do the crackdowns.”
The crackdowns are consistently carried out by members of the 109 Group, who conduct warrantless home and street searches of your bag and mobile phone to check whether you are consuming foreign content. The members of the 109 Group are actively embroiled to solicit bribes from the accused and their families. The repression and corruption are part of the so-called system. However, if anyone is caught during the enforcement results phase, there is no guarantee of help because of the intensive crackdowns.
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How Citizens Get Access to South Korean Content?
The South Korean content is smuggled through the borders of the two nations into the households of North Korea. One of the notable examples is the North Korea Strategy Center’s efforts to infuse the joy of freedom and expression through South Korean content and foreign television programs. NKSC founder Kang Chol-hwan became the largest political group against the Kim Jong Un dictatorship, armed with several Gygabytes of foreign movies, shows, music, and web series. The aim is straightforward: to overthrow the existing Kim dynasty’s stranglehold over the North Korean citizenry.
According to statistics shared by the World Food Programme, “only 16 per cent of households in North Korea have access to adequate food, 28 per cent of the population witnessed stunting growth.” Despite these figures, no one dares to move North Korean leader Kim Jong Un out of government because he has control over the minds of the North Korean people. The NKSC leader Kang Chol-hwan aims to change this by smuggling 3000 USBs of foreign movies and music to change people’s narrative and introduce them to more liberal ideas and lifestyles.
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3000 USBs vs Public Executions
The NKSC efforts of smuggling foreign ideas into North Korea pale in comparison to the Kim Dynasty’s well-established education system, aided by brutal public executions. The ideological education starts from the very foundation of children and shapes their entire life around the restriction and adoration of the North Korean leader. Schools force students to attend public executions as part of their ideological education. An interviewee described how middle and high school students were ordered to watch the execution and learn the lesson of not consuming South Korean shows ever again.
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Students from elementary, middle, and high school were criticized for consuming foreign shows and music by the youth league and party organizations, highlighting that students’ spirit is corrupted and lack ideological preparedness. The smuggling of South Korean shows is a good strategy, but schools conducting ideological education sessions weekly to explain new rules and laws penalizing the consumption of foreign media and witnessing trials are more effective.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there any North Koreans in K-pop?
The former North Korean citizens Hyuk and Seok fled the country as teenagers and debuted as members of K-pop boy band 1VERSE after several years of rigorous training in South Korea.
Does North Korea know BTS?
The North Korean people are not allowed to consume South Korean music and TV shows under the 2020 Anti-Reactionary Thoughts and Culture Act, but lately K-pop boy band BTS has gaining immense popularity among the North Koreans as a result of a smuggling mission led by the NKSC leader Kang Chol-hwan.
Do North Koreans like K-pop?
Yes, North Korean people love K-pop music, and most of them walk long miles just to get a USB flash drive filled with K-pop music songs and Korean dramas for their entertainment and acknowledgement of life outside the North Korean bubble.
Which actress was kidnapped by North Korea?
The South Korean actress and director Choi Eun-hee was kidnapped by North Korea. She was kidnapped by the then North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il, to elevate the standard and quality of the North Korean propaganda films for people’s consumption.
