K-pop inspiration to young North Koreans

Former defectors based in South Korea have long understood the power of foreign news and culture in countering the regime’s propaganda. Projects such as Flash Drives for Freedom smuggle in USB sticks loaded with Hollywood movies and American television shows, as well South Korean dramas and music videos.

But growing private enterprise may be the most powerful driver of change, with videos brought in en masse by traders who cross back and forth from China. The risks for viewers are real though, with a special unit of the police and security services known as Group 109 in charge of a renewed crackdown. Even minors who are caught can face six months to a year of ideological training in a reeducation camp – unless their parents can bribe their way out – while adults can face a lifetime of hard labor or, for sensitive material, even execution.

As far as the music, it’s not just the melodies and lyrics that prove catchy, it’s also the performers’ clothes and hairstyles. “The kind of thing I wanted to do was dye my hair and wear miniskirts and jeans,” said Kang Na-ra, 22. “Once I wore jeans to the market, and I was told I had to take them off. They were burned in front of my eyes.”

Kang, who had been a singer at an arts high school in Pyongyang, defected in 2014, so “I could express myself freely.” Now she has a successful career as a TV personality and an actress.

[San Francisco Gate]

This entry was posted in Humanitarian Aid and Relief, North Korean refugee, Uncategorized by Grant Montgomery.