Ten thousand North Korean students surrender to authorities for watching K-dramas, listening to K-pop
KUALA LUMPUR, May 5 — Four months after hermit kingdom North Korea imposed the “anti-reactionary thought” law, 10,000 of its students have surrendered themselves to authorities for consuming K-dramas and movies and listening to K-pop.
Singapore portal TODAY reported that the law was implemented in December and the figures were updated on April 28.
Some 5,000 DVD players were also reportedly handed over to the government in return for a lighter sentence.
According to the portal, the law imposed high fines and prison sentences on anyone in the country caught enjoying South Korean entertainment or copying the way South Koreans speak.
The “anti-reactionary thought” law is said to be supreme leader Kim Jong-un’s call to raise the standard of homegrown (and state-controlled) media and also part of his war on outside influences.
The dictator reportedly hates the use of terms like “oppa” and “dong-saeng”, which means ‘big brother’ and ‘younger sister or brother’ respectively, to refer to non-relatives like how those in South Korea have a habit of doing.
Among the sentences that had been meted out are 15 years in forced labour camps and fines for parents whose child violates the ban.
Anyone who has been caught importing banned material from South Korea faces life imprisonment, while those who import the same items from the United States or Japan could face death.
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