<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/north-korea" rel="" target="" title="North Korea"><span>North Korea</span></a><span> is executing people in public for watching </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/south-korea" rel="" target="" title="South Korean"><span>South Korean</span></a><span> TV shows and listening to K-Pop, according to a leading international human rights organisation.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>People who have fled North Korea between 2012 and 2020 have detailed the punishments under the ban on foreign media during a series of in-depth interviews with </span><a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2026/02/north-korea-people-executed-for-watching-south-korean-tv/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="Amnesty International"><span>Amnesty International</span></a><span>.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>South Korean television shows, including the Netflix hit </span><em><span>Squid Game</span></em><span>, have surged in popularity around the world in recent years.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>HAPPENING NOW:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/israeli-president-visit-to-australia-huge-protests-expected/40b56f1b-3d34-4f03-bf25-282d4937abb0" target="_blank"><strong><span>Israeli president arrives in Australia under heavy security</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The escapees have described an arbitrary and corrupt system where secret consumption of South Korean TV is widespread but the penalties for violating the vaguely-worded culture laws are determined largely by wealth and connections.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Amnesty International said the introduction of the 2020 Anti-Reactionary Thought and Culture Act enables these severe punishments to persist. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The law defines South Korean content as "rotten ideology that paralyses the people's revolutionary sense".</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/world/north-korea-executing-residents-for-watching-south-korean-tv-shows-and-listening-to-kpop-according-to-amnesty-international/5c3a9af5-3594-4152-886f-5b9a18d44648" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>WATCH:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.nine.com.au/sport/olympics/milano-cortina-2026-womens-downhill-skiing-final-lindsey-vonn-crash-result-video-20260208-p5o0j6.html" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>Vonn 'absolutely devastated' as ugly crash ends legend's Olympics</span></strong></a><span></span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The new law mandates between five and 15 years of forced labour for watching or possessing South Korean dramas, films or music.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It also prescribes heavy sentences including the death penalty for the distribution of large amounts of content or for organising group viewings.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Interviewees described a society in which dramas and films are commonly smuggled in on USB drives from China, which young North Koreans watch on notebook computers with built-in televisions.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>However, privilege plays a role in the application of the law.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Interviewees said people commonly watched South Korean TV knowing that they risked extreme punishment, but also that it was possible to escape the worst penalties if you were able to pay.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/parkville-melbourne-road-rage-attack-e-scooter/b42a26ca-2212-4137-b021-a5369ab28cd5" target="_blank"><strong><span>E-scooter rider punches tradie in road rage attack</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Kim Joonsik*, 28, said he was caught watching South Korean dramas three times before he left the country in 2019.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>However, he avoided punishment because his family had connections to officials.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Usually when high school students are caught, if their family has money, they just get warnings," he told Amnesty International.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I didn't receive legal punishment because we had connections."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Amnesty International said North Korea's government has reportedly deployed a specialised law enforcement unit known as 109 Group to crack down on foreign media consumption for decades.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The organisation said the unit conducts warrantless home and street searches of bags and mobile phones.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Interviewees said workers watch it openly, party officials watch it proudly, security agents watch it secretly and police watch it safely.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/cyclone-mitchell-forecast-campsite-mines-evacuated-as-cyclone-approaches-coast/dc27c584-7921-45ef-a0fa-e010244f5868" target="_blank"><strong><span>Coastal communities brace for landfall as Cyclone Mitchell bears down</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>EPSTEIN FILES:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/jeffrey-epstein-not-running-sex-trafficking-ring-for-powerful-men-fbi-says/76bd71d2-d8db-409a-b732-57d0c8ba577c" target="_blank"><strong><span>FBI's shock verdict on Jeffrey Epstein revealed</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Interviewees described how North Korea uses public executions to terrorise entire communities into compliance. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Choi Suvin* witnessed a public execution in Sinuiju in the North Pyongan Province "in 2017 or 2018" of someone accused of distributing foreign media.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Authorities told everyone to go, and tens of thousands of people from Sinuiju city gathered to watch," she said. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They execute people to brainwash and educate us."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Some interviewees described schools systematically forcing students to attend public executions as part of "ideological education". </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In one case, a squad of 10 people fired about 30 rounds at the condemned person. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Amnesty International was also told in some cases a substance is placed in victims' mouths to prevent them from speaking before execution. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"When we were 16, 17, in middle school, they took us to executions and showed us everything," said Kim Eunju*, 40, who fled in 2019. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"People were executed for watching or distributing South Korean media.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It's ideological education: if you watch, this happens to you too."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Amnesty International's deputy regional director Sarah Brooks called on the law to be abolished.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"People who strive to learn more about the world outside North Korea, or seek simple entertainment from overseas, face the harshest of punishments," Sarah Brooks said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"This completely arbitrary system, built on fear and corruption, violates fundamental principles of justice and internationally recognised human rights. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It must be dismantled so that North Koreans can dare to enjoy the freedoms to which they are entitled."</span><br/><br/><em><span>*All names are pseudonyms</span></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><em><span>NEVER MISS A STORY:</span></em></strong><span> </span><em><span>Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.</span></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><ul><li><strong><em><span>Download the 9NEWS App here via</span></em></strong><span> </span><a href="https://apps.apple.com/au/app/9news/id1010533727" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>Apple</span></em></strong></a><span> </span><strong><em><span>and</span></em></strong><span> </span><a 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