Persecution of Christians in North Korea

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Persecution of Christians in North Korea
Part of the Persecution of Christians
Location North Korea
Date1950s–present
VictimsChristians
PerpetratorNorth Korea Government of North Korea
Part of a series on
Human rights in North Korea
Flag of North Korea.svg
Human rights abuses
Political prisons (Kwanliso)
Re-education camps (Kyohwaso)
Abductions and POWs
International reactions
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The persecution of Christians in North Korea is ongoing and systematic.[1][2][3][4][5][6] According to multiple resolutions which have been passed by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, the North Korean government considers religious activities political crimes,[7] because they could challenge the personality cult of Kim Il-sung and his family.[8][9][10] The Workers Party of Korea also considers religion a tool of American imperialism and the North Korean state uses this argument to justify its activities.[1]

In 2002, it was estimated that there were 12,000 Protestants,[11] and 800 Catholics in North Korea, but South Korean and international church-related groups gave considerably higher estimates, such as 406,000 Christians.[12][13][14]

Treatment of Christians[]

According to the Christian organization Open Doors, North Korea persecutes Christians more than any other country in the world.[15]

In a study of 117 North Koreans who had been affected by religious persecution which was conducted by the , it was found that Christians made up about 80% of the people who were surveyed.[16][1]

Imprisonment[]

Christian Solidarity Worldwide says that there are numerous reports of people being sent to prison camps[17] and subjected to torture and inhuman treatment because of their faith.[18] The family members of reported Christians are also said to be targeted, including children. The youngest of these recorded detainees was three years old at the time of their arrest.[19]

Open Doors estimates that 50,000–70,000 Christians are held in North Korean prison camps.[20][21] According to the , Christians are "disproportionally imprisoned" compared to North Koreans of other faiths.[1]

According to refugee interviews, if North Korean authorities discover that North Korean refugees who were deported from China have converted to Christianity, they are subjected to harsher treatment, torture, and prolonged imprisonment.[22]

Executions[]

According to AsiaNews, during Kim Il-sung's administration, all non-foreign Catholic priests were executed,[23] and Protestant leaders who did not renounce their faith were purged as "American spies."[24] The martyrdom of the Benedictine monks of Tokwon Abbey was documented[25] as the process of beatification was initiated for them.[26]

Public executions[]

There are reports of public executions of Christians,[27][28] with a North Korean defector reporting that one Christian was publicly executed in front of a thousand people.[1] For example, Ri Hyon-ok was allegedly publicly executed in Ryongchon on June 16, 2009 for giving out Bibles, while her husband and children were deported to the Hoeryong political prison camp.[29]

Situation of churches[]

From 1949 to the mid-1950s, under the rule of Kim Il-sung, all churches were closed.[24][30][31] However, since 1988, four church buildings have been erected in Pyongyang with foreign donations:[32] one Catholic, two Protestant and one Russian Orthodox. However, they are only open to foreigners, and North Korean citizens cannot attend the services. The services are used to bring in foreign currency from foreign visitors, including South Koreans. It is therefore clear that the churches are solely there for propaganda purposes.[9][33][34] Defectors to South Korea claim that most North Koreans are unaware the churches exist.[19]

Bibles[]

The Bible is reported to have been banned in North Korea and several incidents have emerged in which Christians were arrested or executed for possessing and/or selling the book,[29] while other reports state that they have their own translated Bible.[35][36][37]

In 2014, an American citizen, Jeffrey Edward Fowle, was forcibly detained for proselytism after authorities discovered him leaving a Bible behind in a public restroom during his vacation in the country.[38]

Kidnapping of clergy[]

See also: List of foreign nationals detained in North Korea

Several pastors, priests, and missionaries who have been campaigning against the persecution have been kidnapped by the North Korean government, including:

Reactions[]

The persecution has been condemned by a variety of different organizations and movements, including Genocide Watch,[40] the SDLP,[41] and the British Government.[41][16][42]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e Casper, Jayson (21 December 2020). "117 Witnesses Detail North Korea's Persecution of Christians". Christianity Today. Archived from the original on 1 September 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  2. ^ Benedict Rogers (22 July 2021). "The World Must Not Forgot North Korea's Crimes Against Humanity". The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  3. ^ Harriet Sherwood (16 January 2019). "One in three Christians face persecution in Asia, report finds". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  4. ^ William J. Cadigan (17 January 2015). "Christian persecution reached record high in 2015, report says". CNN. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  5. ^ Harriet Sherwood (27 July 2015). "Dying for Christianity: millions at risk amid rise in persecution across the globe". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 8 February 2019. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  6. ^ Andre Vornic (24 July 2009). "North Korea 'executes Christians'". BBC. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
  7. ^ "North Korea: Harsher Policies against Border-Crossers". Human Rights Watch, March 5, 2007. Archived from the original on June 8, 2011. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  8. ^ "N. Korea escalates 'cult of Kim' to counter West's influence". The Christian Science Monitor, January 3, 2007. Archived from the original on January 8, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  9. ^ a b "Eyewitness: Christianity in North Korea". BBC. 2002-01-06. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
  10. ^ "North Korea". www.persecution.com. Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  11. ^ Caroline Gluck (January 6, 2002). "Eyewitness: Christianity in North Korea". BBC. Archived from the original on December 9, 2003. Retrieved August 4, 2012.
  12. ^ Alton, 2013. p. 79. As of 2005 the agency "Religious Intelligence UK" estimated 3,846,000 believers of Korean shamanism, 3,245,000 Chondoists, 1,082,888 Buddhists, 406,000 Christians, and the rest non-believers.
  13. ^ Chryssides, Geaves. 2007. p. 110
  14. ^ Association of Religion Data Archives: North Korea: Religious Adherents, 2010. Data from the World Christian Database.
  15. ^ "World Watch List 2012: North Korea No. 1 Persecutor of Christians for 10th Straight Year". Open Doors, January 2, 2012. Archived from the original on January 14, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  16. ^ a b "An exceptional report of Korea Future Initiative about religious persecution | IIRF". www.iirf.eu. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
  17. ^ "North Korea: A case to answer, a call to act" (PDF). Christian Solidarity Worldwide, 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 21, 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  18. ^ "50,000 Christians imprisoned in North Korea". Vatican Radio, April 15, 2011. Archived from the original on September 8, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  19. ^ a b "North Korea". United States Department of State. Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  20. ^ "Death of Kim Jong-Il may not change much for North Korean Christians". Open Doors UK, December 2011. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  21. ^ "Christians in North Korea face torture, execution by firing squad: USCIRF report". The Christian Post. Archived from the original on 2021-09-11. Retrieved 2021-09-11.
  22. ^ "A prison without bars, Eyewitness accounts of the persecution of members of religious groups and repatriated refugees (p. 27–31)" (PDF). U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, March 2008. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 27, 2014. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  23. ^ "N. Korea martyrs slated for sainthood". Religion and Spirituality, May 28, 2007. Archived from the original on March 14, 2013. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
  24. ^ a b Andrei Lankov (March 16, 2005). "North Korea's missionary position". Asia Times. Archived from the original on March 18, 2005. Retrieved August 4, 2012.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  25. ^ "The Martyrs of Tokwon: Historical Preliminary Notes". Missionary Benedictines of St. Ottilien. Archived from the original on September 22, 2013. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
  26. ^ "North Korean Martyrs, the first process for beatification gets underway". Asia News, May 25, 2007. Archived from the original on September 25, 2012. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
  27. ^ "North Korea crushing churches". National Post Canada, November 18, 2005. Archived from the original on February 15, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  28. ^ "New Reports Tell of Executions, Torture of Christians in North Korea". Christian Today, May 27, 2005. Archived from the original on August 13, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  29. ^ a b "North Korea executes woman for giving out bibles". New York Post, July 24, 2009. Archived from the original on September 20, 2021. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  30. ^ "Destroyed Church in Wonsan Vicinity". Willibroard's Gallery. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
  31. ^ "First Church Building Opened in Communist North Korea". The Forerunner, December 2007. Archived from the original on January 29, 2012. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
  32. ^ "Giving Out Bibles Leads to Executions". Washington Times, December 8, 2006. Archived from the original on December 26, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  33. ^ "Bongsu Church in Pyongyang a Fraud, Only for False Propagation of Freedom of Religion". Daily NK, August 2, 2005. Archived from the original on January 22, 2014. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
  34. ^ "Remembering North Korea's Christian martyrs". BBC News. 2016-12-26. Retrieved 2021-10-19.
  35. ^ "VOM Korea uses Bibles translated by the North Korean government". Mission Network News. June 24, 2021.
  36. ^ Tertitskiy, Fyodor (6 June 2016). "The good things in North Korea: Taking a moment to recognize good art, good scholarship and good people". NK News.
  37. ^ Dillmuth, Timothy (14 May 2014). "Where Did Our North Korean Bible Translation Come From?". Do the Word.
  38. ^ "U.S. Tourist Was Detained In North Korea For Leaving Bible In A Bathroom". HuffPost. 2014-08-02. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
  39. ^ "N Korea jails Canadian pastor for life". BBC News. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
  40. ^ "North Korea". Genocide Watch. Retrieved 2021-11-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  41. ^ a b "Freedom of religious belief part one". BBC Democracy Live. 2014-03-25. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
  42. ^ "Freedom of religious belief part two". BBC Democracy Live. 2014-03-26. Retrieved 2021-11-01.
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