Shocking verdict in North Korea: 12 years in prison camp for students – because they watched a series

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Captured, convicted and sent to a labor camp for twelve years: Two North Korean teenagers were arrested for watching a K-drama series from South Korea. A video obtained by BBC Korea shows the sentencing.

According to the BBC, the material was recorded in 2022. Recordings like this are rare in North Korea, as the country does not actually allow and strictly prohibits the publication of photos, videos and other evidence of life in the country.

The two 16-year-olds are handcuffed in a stadium full of young people. The uniformed officers reprimand the boys for “not thinking deeply about their mistakes.”

State propaganda is repeated again and again

South Korean broadcasts, like all other foreign content, are banned in North Korea. Still, some are willing to risk severe penalties to gain access to South Korean series. K-dramas have a large audience worldwide.

In the video, a speaker can be heard repeating state propaganda. “The culture of the rotten puppet regime has spread even to teenagers,” the voice says, apparently referring to South Korea. “They are only 16 years old, but they have ruined their own future,” the clip continues. Officials also provide the boys’ names and publish their addresses.

‘Admiration for South Korea can lead to weakening’

There have been dozens of similar incidents in North Korea in the past. As a rule, the young people were ‘only’ sentenced to five years in a prison camp. However, in 2020, Pyongyang passed a law making viewing or distribution of South Korean entertainment programs punishable by death.

The director of the Sand Institute, which studies the development of North and South Korea, told the BBC: “Admiration for South Korean society could lead to a weakening of the system. This contradicts the monolithic ideology that makes North Koreans worship the Kim family.”

In the 2000s, more and more content from the South Korean side made its way north. However, the regime increasingly viewed entertainment content as a threat. (An)

Source: Blick