North Korea is launching a widespread crackdown on everything from wedding dresses to slang in a bid to counter South Korea’s influence, a new report shows.
The report, released by South Korea’s Unification Ministry, is based on the testimonies of hundreds of North Korean defectors.
These include the case of a 22-year-old man who was executed for admitting to listening to Korean music and distributing movies, The BBC first reported last year.
North Korea described last year’s report as “slander and fabrication” but has not yet responded to the new documents.
According to information gathered, searches of homes have increased since 2021 as officials look for signs of foreign culture, Yonhap News Agency reported.
Signs are said to include wearing a white wedding dress or the groom carrying the bride on his back.
People’s phones will also be searched and messages and contacts checked for slang from South Korea, the report added.
Sunglasses are also seen as counter-revolutionary, although North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is known to wear a pair, the report said. However, his father also labeled certain everyday garments as counter-revolutionary – including jeans.
The exact penalties for these violations are unclear.
However, the suppression of Korean manufacturing culture seems to be even more severe.
A 2020 law makes watching or broadcasting South Korean entertainment punishable by death.
This year’s reports include an earlier public execution revealed by the BBC in which a 22-year-old farmer was killed for listening to 70 songs, watching three films and distributing them.
This is believed to be the only record so far of an execution under the “Reactionary Ideological and Cultural Exclusion Law.”
A video from earlier this year showed Two teenagers sentenced to hard labor for similar crimes.
South Korea’s report comes amid rising tensions between the neighbors.
North Korea has sent more than 2,000 garbage-filled balloons across the border since last month, some of which were found to have parasites inside.
Last week’s meeting between Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin further heightened tensions in relations between the two countries.
It is worth noting that although the report has been released annually since 2018, this is only the second time the report has been released.
Previously, they had not been released to avoid angering North Korea.
