North Korea Executes Teens For Watching ‘Squid Game’ In Presence Of Children

Amnesty International (AI) has revealed that North Korea was executing teenagers for watching the hit South Korean series ‘Squid Game’ and forcing other children to witness the killings as part of “ideological education.”

According to testimonies from defectors, Kim Jong-un’s government continued its brutal crackdown on citizens caught consuming South Korean dramas, music, or other foreign media, crimes punishable by death, long-term labour, or severe humiliation under the country’s notorious Anti-Reactionary Thought and Culture Act.

“These testimonies show how North Korea is enforcing dystopian laws that mean watching a South Korean TV show can cost you your life unless you can afford to pay,” said Sarah Brooks, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director.

“This completely arbitrary system, built on fear and corruption, violates fundamental principles of justice and internationally recognised human rights.”

Several North Korean defectors told Amnesty that schoolchildren are routinely forced to attend public executions as part of state-run “ideological education.”

Choi Suvin, 39, who fled North Korea in 2019, recounted witnessing one such execution in Sinuiju around 2017 or 2018.

“Authorities told everyone to go, and tens of thousands of people from Sinuiju city gathered to watch,” she said.
“They execute people to brainwash and educate us.”

Another former resident, Kim Eunju, 40, said her middle school class was taken to watch people shot for watching or distributing South Korean media.

“When we were 16 or 17, they showed us everything,” she said. “It was meant to scare us, if you watch, this happens to you too.”

Interviewees described a system where the severity of punishment depends not on the crime but on money and connections.

“People are caught for the same act, but punishment depends entirely on money,” said Choi. “People without money sell their houses to gather $5,000 or $10,000 to pay to get out of re-education camps.”

Kim Joonsik, 28, said he was caught watching South Korean dramas three times before escaping to the South. He avoided punishment due to his family’s influence, but his sisters’ friends weren’t as fortunate.

“Usually when high school students are caught, if their family has money, they just get warnings,” Kim said. “Three of my sisters’ friends were sent to labour camps for years because their families couldn’t afford bribes.”

Despite the risks, foreign media consumption remained widespread. Smuggled dramas and music arrive via USB drives from China and are viewed on “notetels” portable computers with built-in televisions.

“Everyone knows that everyone watches,” one defector told Amnesty. “Workers watch it openly, party officials watch it proudly, security agents watch it secretly, and police watch it safely.”

Amnesty’s report highlighted the activities of the “109 Group”, a special law enforcement unit that raids homes, inspects phones, and searches bags without warrants. Members reportedly admit to taking bribes to avoid punishing offenders.

“We don’t want to punish you harshly, but we need to bribe our bosses to save our own lives,” one member reportedly told a detainee.

Brooks warned that Kim Jong-un’s campaign to block access to foreign information has effectively imprisoned North Koreans within a “mental cage.”

“This government’s fear of information has effectively placed the entire population in an ideological cage, suffocating their access to the views and thoughts of other human beings,” she said.

Under the 2020 Anti-Reactionary Thought and Culture Act, watching or possessing South Korean media can result in five to 15 years of forced labour, while distributing content or organising group viewings can carry the death penalty.

Amnesty International called for the immediate abolition of these laws and an end to public executions.

“North Korea’s repression is layered with corruption and devastating for those without wealth or connections,” Brooks added. “It must be dismantled.”