In 2022, a 22-year-old man was publicly executed in North Korea for sharing and listening to K-pop music and South Korean films, according to a recent human rights report by South Korea’s Ministry of Unification. The information was gathered from testimonials of North Korean defectors.
Accusations and harsh punishments
The report revealed that the man from South Hwanghae province was accused of listening to 70 K-pop songs, watching three South Korean films, and distributing this prohibited media. North Korea maintains strict control over the content its citizens consume, including severe restrictions on entertainment and harsh punishments for those who violate these rules.
North Korea intensified its crackdown on outside culture in 2020 with the enactment of a law banning “reactionary ideology and culture.” This legislation is viewed as a measure to shield citizens from Western influences, which the North Korean government deems harmful.
Denial of human rights violations
North Korea has consistently denied accusations of human rights abuses, labeling them as attempts to undermine its leadership. The ban on K-pop is part of a broader effort to protect North Koreans from Western culture. This campaign began under former leader Kim Jong-il and has intensified under his son, Kim Jong-un.
Crackdown on “capitalist” fashion
In 2022, Radio Free Asia, funded by the US government, reported that the North Korean regime was also targeting “capitalist” fashion and hairstyles. The crackdown included skinny jeans, T-shirts with foreign words, and dyed or long hair.
Experts believe that the infiltration of South Korean popular culture poses a threat to the ideological control that demands complete loyalty to the “infallible” Kim dynasty, which has ruled North Korea since its founding in 1948.
Despite the strict measures, the influence of South Korean culture, including recent television shows, appears to be unstoppable, according to a recent North Korean defector.
