North Korean Teens Sentenced to Hard Labor for Watching K-Dramas

A rare video from North Korea shows two teenagers being publicly sentenced to 12 years of hard labor for watching Korean TV dramas, highlighting the regime's strict control over its citizens' access to foreign culture. The video, obtained by NBC News from the SAND Institute, a think tank working with defectors, is believed to be edited in 2022 and is seen as a warning to deter North Koreans from consuming South Korean entertainment. The number of North Korean defectors entering South Korea has tripled in 2021, indicating growing discontent within the reclusive state. The video reinforces a law enacted in 2020, allowing officials to sentence violators to capital punishment for importing or distributing materials showing South Korean culture. Despite the crackdown, some believe that the regime's efforts to suppress South Korean cultural influence will ultimately fail.