Kim Jong Un Calls K-Pop A “Vicious Cancer”— And Introduced Harsher Punishments For Those Caught Watching It

Harsh penalties await those who are caught with any South Korean entertainment.

North Korea’s Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un has once again lashed out at the invading wave of K-Pop and other South Korean culture, calling it a “vicious cancer” that is corrupting North Koreans.

| Korean Central News Agency

This isn’t the first time Kim Jong Un has ordered his government to curb the South Korean cultural invasion and eliminate any source of South Korean entertainment like K-Dramas and K-Pop. In December of last year, he instituted a new law that sentenced anyone caught possessing or watching South Korean entertainment to 5 – 15 years in a labor camp. Those who were caught speaking, writing, or singing in a “South Korean style,” could face two years of hard labor, while those who were caught smuggling the entertainment could even face a death penalty. Even text messages or conversations with evidence of South Korean accents or references could get someone expelled from the city.

| @BTS_official/Twitter

Following this new law, Kim Jong Un ordered every city to stamp out any capitalist tendencies that may crop up, as he believed that North Korea would “crumble like a damp wall,” if it wasn’t eliminated. He’s called the language in South Korean dramas “perverted” for having couples call each other “oppa,” because women in North Korea are only allowed to call their significant other “comrade.”

| Studio Dragon

Kim Jong Un wasn’t always strict like this, once having a concert back in 2018 with a line-up of South Korean pop stars like Red Velvet come perform.

| Korean Central News Agency

But ever since failed diplomatic relations with previous U.S. president Donald Trump, Kim Jong Un has been more cautious and restrictive. These new laws against South Korean entertainment are only the tip of the ice berg, as he continues to regulate even the minutest details from fashion accessories and hair dye.

Source: The New York Times