North Korean Students Secretly Watching 'Ojingeo Game' Face Heavy Sentences Including Life Imprisonment... Sellers Sentenced to Execution by Firing Squad

"'Cases of Juvenile Delinquency First Detected Since the Enactment of the 'Anti-Reactionary Ideology Culture Rejection Act'... Being Seriously Addressed"

The Netflix original series "Squid Game," released on September 17. Photo by Asia Economy DB

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Soyoung] It has been reported that North Korea sentenced high school students at a senior middle school to heavy punishment after they were caught secretly watching the Netflix original series "Squid Game."

On the 23rd (local time), the U.S.-based North Korean news site Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported, "Earlier last week, seven students at a senior middle school in Chongjin City, North Hamgyong Province, were caught by the 109th General Staff Joint Command censorship while watching 'Squid Game.'

According to the report, a resident who imported and sold USB drives containing Korean dramas from China was executed by firing squad, the student who purchased and watched it was sentenced to life imprisonment, and the other students received five years of labor reform sentences.

The media cited an internal North Korean source, explaining, "While the student who bought the USB and friends who watched 'Squid Game' shared the content with other students, the USB was circulated and watched among other students, which led to being caught by the 109th Joint General Staff censorship."

It added, "This case is being treated as a major issue as the first juvenile crime detected since the enactment of the 'Law on the Rejection of Reactionary Thought and Culture.'"

Furthermore, it stated, "Since the border has been closed due to COVID-19 quarantine measures, orders have been given to thoroughly investigate the route through which the USB was smuggled in, so a lengthy investigation and punishment are expected."

It also said, "The principal, youth secretary, and homeroom teacher of the senior middle school to which the students belong have been dismissed and expelled from the party membership list," adding, "It is certain that they will be exiled to mines or remote areas, and other teachers are also feeling uneasy."

Meanwhile, North Korean authorities enacted the 'Law on the Rejection of Reactionary Thought and Culture' in December last year, warning of severe punishment for acts involving foreign videos, publications, songs, and the like. In particular, as K-POP and Korean dramas have become popular among the younger generation recently, crackdowns have been significantly intensified.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.