Anti-socialist and non-socialist struggle video reveals changing lifestyles (Part 1)
An educational video, produced by North Korean authorities and obtained by NK Insider, highlights recent propaganda efforts to eradicate “anti-socialist” and “non-socialist” behavior.
The video, which is used in weekly lectures which the state conducts for citizens, is entitled “Let us actively engage in the struggle to sweep away all anti-socialist and non-socialist phenomena in the capital.” It is part of a campaign focused on changing social realities in Pyongyang.
The video claims that propaganda activities in one district of the city alone targeted some 40,000 officials, workers, and residents over two months. More than 100 people confessed to crimes and around 1,000 “reflected on their wrongdoings.”
In addition, security officers in the Taedonggang District mobilized 18,000 people between March and June last year to attend 16 public trials and four “public struggle sessions.”
In the past, trials of this sort often ended in public executions. Recently, however, there has been a shift to the “public struggle sessions,” where citizens themselves denounce offenders. This appears intended to dilute awareness of the systemic causes of crime under oppressive rule.
The video begins by describing anti-socialist phenomena observed in various units and stressing the reasons they must be eliminated.
North Korea defines foreign culture and the free lifestyle of Western society as “decadent capitalist trends” and demands their complete elimination. To this end, factories, enterprises, and work units regularly hold propaganda sessions explaining the dangers of anti-socialist phenomena and urging their eradication.
Authorities classify banned foreign books, videos, songs, and artworks as “yellow winds” and crack down on them strictly.
The video also reports that the Youth League and labor organizations are tightly controlling ex-convicts, the unemployed, and those who left their workplaces.
People who repent for “crimes” such as watching South Korean movies and dramas, imitating South Korean clothing styles, or adopting South Korean ways of life, are sent to rural areas or coal mines in what amounts to near-permanent internal exile.
Despite this harshness, however, in some parts of Pyongyang, the anti-socialist and non-socialist struggle is proving ineffective. The video portrays Pyongyang as a city rife with crime. It emphasizes, for example, that “capitalist lifestyle trends” among women have led to serious crimes causing social disorder.
Although the authorities claim to manage the capital so strictly that they even call it the “Pyongyang Republic,” the footage reveals that lifestyles are often beyond state control.
Era is a North Korean defector and an experienced journalist who offers a unique perspective on one of the world's most secretive nations. Having escaped the oppressive regime, Era has leveraged her keen understanding of North Korean society to become a beacon of truth. Through her extensive network of in-country reporters, she maintains real-time communication with sources inside North Korea, providing unparalleled insights into the ground realities of the closed society.
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