Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported on the 23rd that high school students who secretly watched the Netflix drama ‘Squid Game’ in North Korea were caught by the authorities and sentenced to life imprisonment. As foreign videos such as Korean dramas spread secretly among North Koreans, the North Korean authorities are intensifying their crackdown and creating an atmosphere of fear.
According to the RFA, seven high school students in Chongjin, North Hamgyeong Province, were recently caught watching a squid game while being censored by the 109 Business Unit Command. A resident who brought dramas from China on a portable storage device (USB memory) and sold them to students was shot, and one of the students who bought and watched the drama was sentenced to life in prison. The remaining six students were sentenced to five years in reform through labor. After receiving the report, the authorities raided the scene where the students were watching the drama.
A North Korean source said, “This is the first case of juveniles caught since the Reactionary Ideology and Culture Rejection Act was enacted in December of last year. It’s becoming a very serious issue,” he told RFA. This law strongly prohibits access to, possession of, and listening to foreign videos, publications, songs, etc. He added, “The border is closed due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), but the authorities are predicting a wind of investigation and punishment on how USB memories were brought in, so residents are anxious.”
Reporter Lee Eun-taek nabi@donga.com
