North Korean Man Executed for Listening to K-pop
In 2022, North Korea publicly executed a 22-year-old citizen from South Hwanghae province for listening to and sharing K-pop music and films, illustrating Pyongyang’s harsh measures against external cultural influences.
According to testimonies documented in the **North Korean Human Rights Report** released by South Korea’s Unification Ministry on Thursday, June 27, the young man was condemned for consuming and distributing 70 South Korean songs and three films.
This report, which compiles accounts from 649 North Korean defectors, underscores the regime’s aggressive campaign against the infiltration of Western culture and information.
North Korea’s prohibition of K-pop traces back to former leader Kim Jong-il, who implemented the ban to protect citizens from what he deemed the “malign influence” of Western culture and its allies.
This policy was further intensified under his son, Kim Jong-un, who, in 2020, introduced legislation targeting “reactionary ideology and culture.”
The North Korean government has dismissed accusations of severe human rights abuses, labeling them as part of a conspiracy to destabilize the regime.
As detailed in the report, North Koreans endure regular inspections of their mobile phones for any evidence of forbidden contact names, expressions, or slang.
**Human Rights Watch** criticized the North Korean regime in their 2023 World Report, stating, “The government does not tolerate pluralism, bans independent media, civil society organizations, and trade unions, and systematically denies all basic liberties, including freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, association, and freedom of religion and belief.”
North Korean Man Executed for Listening to K-pop
