Severe sentence imposed on N. Korean students for watching ‘Squid Game’

Radio Free Asia reported on Tuesday that North Korean authorities had caught high school students watching Netflix drama “Squid Game” and imposed severe sentences including life sentence. North Korean authorities are strengthening efforts to track down the spread of dramas and contents from overseas. 　

Radio Free Asia reported that seven high school students in Chongjin City of North Korea were caught by the Surveillance Bureau Group 109. The resident that had sold the copy of the drama on a USB device was shot to death, and a student that had purchased and watched the drama was sentenced to death. Six other students were sentenced to five years of labor. The authorities had tracked down the students after a tip-off.

According to a North Korean source, the arrest of the students marks the first time that the government is applying the “Elimination of Reactionary Thought and Culture,” which was enacted in December last year. The act prohibits watching, keeping, or distributing media, publications, and songs from overseas.

“Residents are engulfed by anxiety, as the authorities can find out how the drama was smuggled in with the border closed due to the coronavirus pandemic,” said the source.


Eun-Taek Lee nabi@donga.com