North Korea Publicly Executes 80 People With Over 10,000 Made To Watch
As long as there exists such kind of monstrous government, be it in any part of the world, all our efforts for peace and progress are futile.
As many as 80 people were publicly executed in North Korea on 3 November
North Korea’s Kim Jong-Un had 80 people publicly executed on November 3, according to Korea’s Joongang Daily News. It’s the first known public executions since he took power after his father’s death.
huffingtonpost.comIn seven cities across North Korea, people who had watched South Korean videos, “pornography” or possessed Bibles were killed.
globalpost.comThe executions took place in Wonsan in Kangwon Province, Chongjin in North Hamgyong Province, Sariwon in North Hwanghae Province and Pyongsong in South Pyongan. According to the newspaper, about ten people were killed in each city.
misguidedchildren.comAccording to Korea’s Joongang Daily News, this is what happened:
“In Wonsan, eight people were tied to a stake at a local stadium, had their heads covered with white sacks and were shot with a machine gun, according to the source.
ibtimes.comAccording to witnesses of the execution, the source said, Wonsan authorities gathered some 10,000 people, including children, at Shinpoong Stadium, which has a capacity of 30,000 people, and forced them to watch.
scallywagandvagabond.com“I heard from the residents that they watched in terror as the corpses were riddled by machine-gun fire that they were hard to identify afterwards.”
washingtontimes.comMost were charged with watching illicit South Korean TV dramas, and some with prostitution
The Wonsan victims were mostly charged with watching or illegally trafficking South Korean videos, being involved in prostitution or being in possession of a Bible. Any family members or “accomplices” were shipped off to prison camps.
huffingtonpost.comThe Seoul-based news website, Daily NK, which is run by North Korean defectors and has a wide network of sources, said it had no information on the executions. But another defector-run website, North Korea Intellectual Solidarity, said its sources had reported several months ago on plans for a wave of public executions.
independent.co.uk"The regime is obviously afraid of potential changes in people's mindsets and is pre-emptively trying to scare people off," said one website official.
telegraph.co.ukWatching unsanctioned foreign films or TV -- especially those from the capitalist South -- is a serious offence in North Korea.
However, efforts to control their distribution have been circumvented by technology, with an increasing number being smuggled in on DVDs, flash drives and mp3 players.
latimes.comKim Jong-un appears to be attempting to stamp out opposition by holding public displays of such violence
Any hint of sympathy toward South Korea or its western style government is brutally enforced. South Korea has a large population of Christians, and is host to the largest church in the world, an instant intimidation factor for Kim Jong-un.
misguidedchildren.comIn August, Kim was reported to have ordered the executions of a dozen entertainers from the Unhasu Orchestra and the Wangjaesan Light Music Band, including ex-girlfriend Hyon Song Wol. Chosun Ilbo, another leading South Korean daily, said the troupe members reportedly filmed themselves having sex and sold the videos on the black market to earn money.
latimes.comIn a new report, the Rand Corporation think tank claims that Kim survived an assassination attempt in 2012 and that his personal security has since been stepped up dramatically. The report concurs with South Korean intelligence sources that stated in March that a faction within the North Korean army had been involved in an attempt on Kim’s life in November of last year.
independent.co.ukJust last month, Malaysia's HELP University gave Kim Jong Un an honourary doctorate