In North Korea, the number of people executed for watching foreign content is sharply increasing – UN report
Kyiv • UNN
Since 2020, North Korea has more frequently applied the death penalty for watching or distributing foreign media content. A 22-year-old man was executed for distributing South Korean films and music.
Since 2020, the North Korean authorities have increasingly applied the death penalty to citizens who watch or distribute foreign films, TV series, and music, the United Nations reports in a new report, writes UNN.
Details
The document is based on numerous interviews with Koreans who have fled the country over the past decade. As the BBC notes, since 2015, at least six laws have been adopted in the DPRK that expand the possibilities for applying the death penalty, including for distributing foreign media content.
According to the report, in 2024, a 22-year-old man was executed for watching and distributing South Korean films and music. Control over compliance with the bans is carried out by a government task force, which includes law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and representatives of the Workers' Party. Law enforcement officers conduct searches of homes without warrants or warning, checking computers, televisions, and radios.
UN respondents said that before 2020, those caught watching foreign content were mostly forced to "re-educate" and then released. Since the early 2020s, cases of public executions have become significantly more frequent – people are shot on the spot.
No other population group is under such restrictions in the modern world
Despite the high risks, North Koreans continue to watch foreign films and TV series, trying to gain access to information outside of state control.
The UN Human Rights Office continues to document human rights violations, some of which may qualify as international crimes, while the state lacks independent institutions or processes to ensure accountability and provide victims with effective remedies