Organisation working with North Korean defectors released a video showing North Korean authorities publicly sentencing two teenagers for watching K-pop.
The two 16-year-olds in Pyongyang were being convicted for watching South Korean movies and music videos. The video was released by the South and North Development (SAND) Institute.
North Korea has for years imposed tough sentences on anyone caught enjoying South Korean entertainment or copying the way South Koreans speak in a war on outside influences since a sweeping new “anti-reactionary thought” law was imposed in 2020.
“Judging from the heavy punishment, it seems that this is to be shown to people across North Korea to warn them. If so, it appears this lifestyle of South Korean culture is prevalent in North Korean society,” said Choi Kyong-hui, president of SAND and Doctor of Political Science at Tokyo University.
“I think this video was edited around 2022. What is troublesome for (North Korean leader) Kim Jong Un is that Millennials and Gen Z people have changed their way of thinking. I think he’s working on turning it back to the North Korean way,” he added.
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