The amount of NK "defenders" (propaganda shills of some stripe or another) on even this small thread about the regime's well documented, evidence-abundant brutality is pretty impressive. I had no idea so many secret NK IT workers were fans of HN too! Welcome comrades... We'll water you down into defection yet.
hahaha. Good point. But seriously, a quick browse of the comments below is full of absurdities: Claims that the BBC is a shill of imperialism (It may very well be to an extent, but that doesn't mean it isn't laying out deep reporting with plenty of real information about well documented barbarities by the Kim regime), claims that the majority of NK defectors are mainly liars (thousands of them, all coordinating their lies across multiple decades well enough to mostly match in their details, really?) and what-aboutist nonsense implying that no country with its own border controls or occasional attempts to stifle free expression is much different from what NK does; Degrees of difference do exist, and can eventually mount enough until a difference becomes fundamentally qualitative. North Korea is well beyond the pale for mounting degrees of repression.
Then there's the idea that it's just too unbelievable to conceive that the regime would execute people simply for watching foreign movies. The Stalin regime executed or GULAG-starved many hundreds of thousands for the 1930s versions of the same thing, or for having any contact and even just suspected contact with foreigners. The Nazi regime killed millions simply for existing under a certain invented category of threat, the Cambodian Khmer Rouge would mass execute hundreds of thousands for being "bourgeoisie" because they.... had university educations, or maybe wore glasses, or spoke a second language (yes, the condemnations were really that murderously banal and never mind that many Khmer leaders themselves could tick off these same classifications for their own lives). I see nothing at all unbelievable about a youthful dictator in a closed country protected by its nuclear arsenal further absolutizing his own power by showing ever more of his already well-demonstrated indifference to human life whenever it suits him.
Not about to defend NK regime, but to make it fair, and not to play "they are bad guys, thus we're good guys".
First, doubts of people not right away believing any news about NK are justified, given how many lies about NK, like executing by feeding to dogs, were spread. So don't take them as NK defenders, it may be just a healthy skepticism.
Second, note that NK kills their citizens for what is illegal in their country, which is gross, but in 2019 Americans killed North Koreans for what was pretty legal, and got away with it [1].
Third, it looks hypocritic to read how horrible is that people got prosecuted for just watching videos. We all know that in so called civilized democracies, people's life can be ruined (luckily not taken) for possessing illegal video materials, it's just legality differs by jurisdictions.
West's true advantage is that we're much more shy in capital punishments, however we're still far from humanistic ideals, and I believe concentrating only on NK regime crimes lets the mindset "they being so bad, then we're not so bad after all".
I believe the logic is simple, the same as with advertising illegal drugs: lies can be seductive and do harm. HK officials make people consider any outer information as lies-filled propaganda, and thus justify the prohibition.
Foreign influence in social media and news media is a publicly admitted concern by American government, EU, China, and that’s just the ones I read about. So you logic doesn’t make sense.
the former Ugoslaviain police were infamous for dragging youth of "to beat the Zappa out of them", but on.the fall of communism uncle Frank was greeted in Ugodlavia by thousands at the airport was given special honours and a very strong offer to be part of there government, they very much wanted to keep him
perhaps something similar is taking shape in.NK
As I grow older, one thing that I've learned is that power won't stop.
One day they ask people to stop disrespect the leader, everyone obeys, then maybe the next day they'll start force people to praise the leader or be executed.
The world is a Tug Of War, your interest against other's. If either side gave up, then the otherside may just come in crushing.
Some foreigner came into their country and tried to 'illuminate' the 'unwashed' masses via tearing down propaganda and was promptly thrown into some hellhole of a jail.
Seems to me like a normal thing to have happened. By the standards of the Global North, that is.
Doesn't seem meaningfully different from today's USA.
The most plausible explanation that those people who escaped NK were sentenced for something else and use excuse of watching foreign films to look good to Western researchers.
I believe that media landscape is restricted in NK, but getting a death sentence for a watching movie? No way it is possible.
Why do you think that is the 'most plausible explanation'? NK meets the simple test for evil dictatorships: do they need to use fences to stop citizens from leaving? Yes, NK does exactly that.
I wonder why NK doesn't pay "fake" defectors to create counter-propaganda.
Well, that's a silly joke. Yet, the fact is that regime has implemented new laws to strictly regulate citizens' access to SK/Western TV shows.
Nor does it make any effort to present its own narrative to the world by allowing people to freely share some TikTok clips showing them enjoying domestic content about their supreme commander over shitty foreign Netflix videos. Why? Because no way it is possible.
Look at the Soviet Union at the height of Stalinist oppression in the 1930s. Having the wrong book (not even necessarily a Western book but even a Soviet book that is no longer in good graces) could be a trip to the Gulag which for many was a death sentence.
A lot of it was driven by quotas that the police had to meet.
There is just a lot of bs being spread about NK. Westerners, for example, genuindely believed all koreans had to get a haircut that is approved by the government.
I'm not even saying this country is not paranoid, but its nearly not as bad as everyone is imaging, and frankly, considering what Americans have inflicted unto the korean people, its fairly understandable.
The amount of NK "defenders" (propaganda shills of some stripe or another) on even this small thread about the regime's well documented, evidence-abundant brutality is pretty impressive. I had no idea so many secret NK IT workers were fans of HN too! Welcome comrades... We'll water you down into defection yet.
Given that NK hackers have probably much more incentives to do their work well than western ones, you shouldn't wonder that they do.
hahaha. Good point. But seriously, a quick browse of the comments below is full of absurdities: Claims that the BBC is a shill of imperialism (It may very well be to an extent, but that doesn't mean it isn't laying out deep reporting with plenty of real information about well documented barbarities by the Kim regime), claims that the majority of NK defectors are mainly liars (thousands of them, all coordinating their lies across multiple decades well enough to mostly match in their details, really?) and what-aboutist nonsense implying that no country with its own border controls or occasional attempts to stifle free expression is much different from what NK does; Degrees of difference do exist, and can eventually mount enough until a difference becomes fundamentally qualitative. North Korea is well beyond the pale for mounting degrees of repression.
Then there's the idea that it's just too unbelievable to conceive that the regime would execute people simply for watching foreign movies. The Stalin regime executed or GULAG-starved many hundreds of thousands for the 1930s versions of the same thing, or for having any contact and even just suspected contact with foreigners. The Nazi regime killed millions simply for existing under a certain invented category of threat, the Cambodian Khmer Rouge would mass execute hundreds of thousands for being "bourgeoisie" because they.... had university educations, or maybe wore glasses, or spoke a second language (yes, the condemnations were really that murderously banal and never mind that many Khmer leaders themselves could tick off these same classifications for their own lives). I see nothing at all unbelievable about a youthful dictator in a closed country protected by its nuclear arsenal further absolutizing his own power by showing ever more of his already well-demonstrated indifference to human life whenever it suits him.
Not about to defend NK regime, but to make it fair, and not to play "they are bad guys, thus we're good guys".
First, doubts of people not right away believing any news about NK are justified, given how many lies about NK, like executing by feeding to dogs, were spread. So don't take them as NK defenders, it may be just a healthy skepticism.
Second, note that NK kills their citizens for what is illegal in their country, which is gross, but in 2019 Americans killed North Koreans for what was pretty legal, and got away with it [1].
Third, it looks hypocritic to read how horrible is that people got prosecuted for just watching videos. We all know that in so called civilized democracies, people's life can be ruined (luckily not taken) for possessing illegal video materials, it's just legality differs by jurisdictions.
West's true advantage is that we're much more shy in capital punishments, however we're still far from humanistic ideals, and I believe concentrating only on NK regime crimes lets the mindset "they being so bad, then we're not so bad after all".
[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/05/us/navy-seal-north-korea-...
There was a big black market for foreign films, I learned from videos smuggled out. Imported from China or recorded with satellite dishes.
I'm sure the current leader saw that also.
what I don't get about some of these regimes, is if your 'system' is so great then you shouldn't be threatened by foreign influences at all.
ultimately it shows - your system is built on 'sinking' sand.
I believe the logic is simple, the same as with advertising illegal drugs: lies can be seductive and do harm. HK officials make people consider any outer information as lies-filled propaganda, and thus justify the prohibition.
Foreign influence in social media and news media is a publicly admitted concern by American government, EU, China, and that’s just the ones I read about. So you logic doesn’t make sense.
the former Ugoslaviain police were infamous for dragging youth of "to beat the Zappa out of them", but on.the fall of communism uncle Frank was greeted in Ugodlavia by thousands at the airport was given special honours and a very strong offer to be part of there government, they very much wanted to keep him perhaps something similar is taking shape in.NK
Communism is evil, and so is everyone who believes in it.
You should also mention that capitalism is evil (so is everyone who believes to it), otherwise it's lie by omission.
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As I grow older, one thing that I've learned is that power won't stop.
One day they ask people to stop disrespect the leader, everyone obeys, then maybe the next day they'll start force people to praise the leader or be executed.
The world is a Tug Of War, your interest against other's. If either side gave up, then the otherside may just come in crushing.
Right? It's like killing people for what they believe in. North Korea is cra-... wait a second...
Low tier comment but I genuinely believe we might be less than a decade away from this situation in the US.
Kim Jong-Un, too, while they're at it.
I find some of the claims made about North Korea rather fanciful and unbelievable.
I am sure the parents of Otto Warmbier [0] could disinfect your disbelief in the harsh light of their reality.
0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Warmbier
Ok, so let me get this straight.
Some foreigner came into their country and tried to 'illuminate' the 'unwashed' masses via tearing down propaganda and was promptly thrown into some hellhole of a jail.
Seems to me like a normal thing to have happened. By the standards of the Global North, that is.
Doesn't seem meaningfully different from today's USA.
5 replies →
The most plausible explanation that those people who escaped NK were sentenced for something else and use excuse of watching foreign films to look good to Western researchers. I believe that media landscape is restricted in NK, but getting a death sentence for a watching movie? No way it is possible.
Why do you think that is the 'most plausible explanation'? NK meets the simple test for evil dictatorships: do they need to use fences to stop citizens from leaving? Yes, NK does exactly that.
1 reply →
I wonder why NK doesn't pay "fake" defectors to create counter-propaganda. Well, that's a silly joke. Yet, the fact is that regime has implemented new laws to strictly regulate citizens' access to SK/Western TV shows. Nor does it make any effort to present its own narrative to the world by allowing people to freely share some TikTok clips showing them enjoying domestic content about their supreme commander over shitty foreign Netflix videos. Why? Because no way it is possible.
Look at the Soviet Union at the height of Stalinist oppression in the 1930s. Having the wrong book (not even necessarily a Western book but even a Soviet book that is no longer in good graces) could be a trip to the Gulag which for many was a death sentence.
A lot of it was driven by quotas that the police had to meet.
Me too. I don't think they need a reason to execute a person...
It certainly serves a purpose to have a reason, to make people fearful.
2 replies →
You find them to be, do you have any insight that would help us understand your point ?
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There is just a lot of bs being spread about NK. Westerners, for example, genuindely believed all koreans had to get a haircut that is approved by the government.
I'm not even saying this country is not paranoid, but its nearly not as bad as everyone is imaging, and frankly, considering what Americans have inflicted unto the korean people, its fairly understandable.
6 replies →