22-Yr-Old Publicly Executed in North Korea For Listening K-Pop Music

A 22-year-old youth was publicly executed in North Korea for listening to K-pop music and sharing films, stated a human rights report released by South Korea’s unification ministry, reported The Guardian.

As per the 2024 Report on North Korean Human Rights, a young man from South Hwanghae province was executed in 2022 as he was found guilty of listening to 70 South Korean songs, watching three films, and sharing them.

The youth faced death sentence as he violated North Korea’s 2020 law prohibiting “reactionary ideology and culture” that includes prohibition on South Korean pop culture. This law was initiated under former leader Kim Jong-il and intensified under his son, Kim Jong-un.

The report includes testimonies from 649 North Korean defectors detailing Pyongyang’s crackdown on Western influence.

Officials of the Kim Jong Un-led country frequently inspect mobile phones to detect alleged influenced by South Korean culture.

Activities such as brides wearing white dresses, grooms carrying brides, wearing sunglasses, or using wine glasses for alcohol, are also met with severe punishment, according to the report.

According to previous reports, there were prohibitions on “capitalist” fashion trends and hairstyles, skinny jeans, T-shirts featuring foreign languages, and unconventional hair colours or lengths.