According to a report by Amnesty International, teenagers in North Korea are facing public executions and imprisonment for watching Squid Game.
This Netflix series, originating from South Korea, is one of the platform’s most viewed shows. The narrative includes characters who have fled from North Korea’s repressive regime.
For a long time, Western media, particularly from the US and South Korea, has been prohibited in North Korea, with harsh consequences for those who smuggle or consume it.
Often, media is clandestinely brought into the country via memory sticks due to the nation’s stringent internet regulations.
It’s not just Squid Game that incurs such severe penalties; other South Korean media, such as K-Pop, is also forbidden.
A recent report by Amnesty International features accounts from North Korean defectors, highlighting how pervasive South Korean media is despite its ban.
One individual told Amnesty that the consumption of such media is an open secret, stating: “Everyone knows everyone watches, including those who do the crackdowns.”
They noted that penalties vary, with harsher punishments for organizing a viewing event compared to merely possessing the media.
“Workers watch it openly, party officials watch it proudly, security agents watch it secretly, and police watch it safely,” the source added.
Kim Eunju, aged 40, recounted the severity of the punishments, stating: “When we were 16, 17, in middle school, they took us to executions and showed us everything.
“People were executed for watching or distributing South Korean media. It’s ideological education: if you watch, this happens to you too.”
The possibility of avoiding punishment also depends on one’s ability to bribe, meaning those who cannot afford to bribe face stricter penalties.
Choi Suvin, who fled North Korea in 2019, said: “People are caught for the same act, but punishment depends entirely on money.
“People without money sell their houses to gather 5,000 or 10,000 USD to pay to get out of the re-education camps.”
An Amnesty International spokesperson commented: “These testimonies show how North Korea is enforcing dystopian laws that mean watching a South Korean TV show can cost you your life – unless you can afford to pay.
“The authorities criminalize access to information in violation of international law, then allow officials to profit off those fearing punishment. This is repression layered with corruption, and it most devastates those without wealth or connections.”