Capital punishment in North Korea explained

Capital punishment is a legal penalty in North Korea. It is used for many offences, such as grand theft, murder, rape, drug smuggling, treason, espionage, political dissent, defection, piracy, consumption of media not approved by the government and proselytizing religious beliefs that contradict practiced Juche ideology. Owing to the secrecy of the North Korean government, working knowledge of the topic depends heavily on anonymous sources, accounts of defectors (both relatives of victims, and former members of the government) and reports by Radio Free Asia, a CIA-funded propaganda service that operates in East Asia. The country allegedly carries out public executions, which, if true, makes North Korea one of the last four countries to still perform public executions, the other three being Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Somalia, but this has been disputed by some defector accounts.

Reported executions

The South-Korean-based Database Center for North Korean Human Rights has collected unverified testimony on 1,193 historic executions in North Korea to 2009.[1] Amnesty International reported that there were 105 executions between 2007 and 2012.[2] The Foreign Policy periodical estimated there were 60 executions in 2010.[3] In October 2001, the North Korean government told the UN Human Rights Committee that "only 13" executions had occurred since 1998 and that no public execution had occurred since 1992.

On December 13, 2013, North Korean state media announced the execution of Jang Sung-taek, the uncle by marriage of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un.[4] The South Korean National Intelligence Service believes that two of Kim Jong Un's closest aides, Lee Yong-ha and Jang Soo-keel, were executed in mid-November.[5]

In 2014, the United Nations Human Rights Council created a Commission of inquiry on human rights in the DPRK, investigating and documenting alleged instances of executions carried out with or without trial, publicly or secretly, in response to political and other crimes that are often not among the most serious. The Commission determined that these systematic acts, if true, rise to the level of crimes against humanity.[6]

List of reported executions

Date of executionConvictCrimeMethodSource
December 19, 2023Unnamned 23-year old manMurder–robberyPublic execution by firing squadRadio Free Asia[7]
September 25, 2023Unnamned 40-year old manStealing medicinePublic execution by firing squadRadio Free Asia[8]
August 30, 2023Nine unnamed peopleSmuggling beefPublic execution by firing squadRadio Free Asia[9]
March 2023Unnamed pregnant womanPolitical dissentUnspecifiedHindustan Times[10]
March 2023Six unnamed teenagersWatching South Korean movies and using drugsExecution by shootingHindustan Times
October 2022Two unnamed teenagers Distributing South Korean moviesPublic execution by firing squadRadio Free Asia[11]
October 2022Unnamed teenagerMurder of stepmother Public execution by firing squadRadio Free Asia
April 2022Unnamed 22-year-old manDistributing South Korean mediaPublic execution by firing squadSouth Korea's Unification Ministry,[12] BBC[13]
January 2022Unnamed man and womanDistributing South Korean moviesPublic execution by firing squadDaily NK[14]
March 2, 2021Three unnamed men and one unnamed womanDistributing South Korean moviesPublic execution by firing squadDaily NK[15]
July 20, 2020Six unnamed menSex traffickingPublic execution by shootingRadio Free Asia[16]
May 2020Unnamed woman and manEscape attemptExecution by shootingRadio Free Asia[17]
April 2020Three unnamed menTheftExecution by shootingRadio Free Asia[18]
February 2020Unnamed manQuarantine violationExecution by shooting[19]
March 2019Two unnamed womenFortune-tellingPublic execution by shooting[20]
January 10, 2019Unnamed manMurder of prison guardExecution by shooting[21]
December 2018Unnamed manCorruptionPublic execution by shooting[22]
December 2018Unnamed personFortune tellingPublic execution; method unspecified[23]
November 17, 2018Unnamed womanFortune tellingExecution by shootingDaily NK[24]
2018Male Military officerEmbezzlement[25]
February 27, 20175 unnamed menMaking false reportExecution by shooting[26]
April 2017One manExtortion, murder, theftSecret execution; method unspecifiedDaily NK[27]
May 2015Choe Yong-gonTreason
2015Six peopleConducting Christian worshipExecution by shooting[28]
2014UnspecifiedConducting ShamanismUnspecifiedUSCIRF[29]
201449-year-old manCalling relative in South KoreaUnspecified[30]
December 12, 2013Jang Song-thaek and 7 unnamed menTreasonExecution by shooting
April 2011Child and GrandmotherConducting Christian worshipExecution by firing squad[31]
January 3, 2011Unnamed man and unnamed womanTreasonExecution by shooting[32]
March 17, 2010Pak Nam-giTreasonExecution by shooting
July 10, 2007Unnamed womanStealing and murder of a 12 year-old girlExecution by shooting[33]
May 17, 2007Two GuardsSelling drugs and theftPublic execution[34]
March 2, 2005Han Bok NamIllegal border crossing and human traffickingPublic execution by shooting[35]
March 1, 2005Choi Jae Gon and Park Myung GilTransgression of the national border and human traffickingPublic execution by shooting[36]
February 28- March 1, 2005Three menHuman traffickingPublic execution by shooting[37]
March 2002Three members of the Lee Min Park familyConducting Christian worshipUnspecified
1997So Kwan-huiSabotage Public execution by shooting
October 1991Park Myung-sikTwelve murdersExecution by firing squad[38]
1981Woo In-heeMistress of Kim Jong IlPublic execution by shooting[39]

Public executions

North Korea was alleged to have resumed public executions in October 2007 after they had declined in the years following 2000 amidst international criticism. Prominent supposedly executed criminals include officials convicted of drug trafficking and embezzlement. Common criminals convicted of crimes such as murder, robbery, rape, drug dealing, smuggling, piracy, vandalism, etc. have also been reported to be executed, mostly by firing squad. The country does not publicly release national crime statistics or reports on the levels of crimes.[40], North Korea is allegedly one of four countries carrying out executions in public, the other three being Iran, Saudi Arabia and Somalia.[41] However, according to defectors interviewed by The Diplomat in 2014, the practice of such activities had not occurred, at least in Hyesan since 2000.[42]

In October 2007, a South Pyongan province factory chief convicted of making international phone calls from 13 phones he installed in his factory basement was supposedly executed by firing squad in front of a crowd of 150,000 people in a stadium, according to an unverified report from a South Korean aid agency called Good Friends.[3] [43] Good Friends also reported that six were killed in the rush as spectators left. In another unverified instance, 15 people were allegedly publicly executed for crossing the border into China.[44]

A U.N. General Assembly committee has adopted a draft resolution, co-sponsored by more than 50 countries, expressing "very serious concern" at reports of widespread human rights violations in North Korea, including public executions. North Korea has condemned the draft, saying it is inaccurate and biased. The report was sent to the then 192-member General Assembly for a final vote.[45]

In 2011, two people were allegedly executed in front of 500 spectators for handling propaganda leaflets floated across the border from South Korea, reportedly as part of an unverified campaign by former North Korean leader Kim Jong Il to tighten ideological control as he groomed his youngest son, Kim Jong Un, as the eventual successor.[46]

In June 2019, a South Korean NGO the Transitional Justice Working Group released an unverified report “Mapping the Fate of the Dead” that suggested 318 sites in North Korea supposedly used by the government for public executions.[47] According to the NGO, public executions have taken place near rivers, fields, markets, schools, and sports grounds. The report alleges that family members and children of those sentenced to death were forced to watch their executions.[48]

Capital punishment in prison camps

Amnesty International has alleged that torture and executions are widespread in political prisons in North Korea.[49] Unverified testimonies describe secret and public executions in North Korean prisons by firing squad, decapitation or by hanging. Executions are allegedly used as a means of deterrence, often accompanied by torture.[50]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: White Paper on North Korean Human Rights 2009 . Database Center for North Korean Human Rights . Seoul . 978-89-93739-03-9 . May 31, 2009 . December 3, 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20131104094518/http://nkdb.org/bbs/data/publication/2009_NKDB_whitepaper_english.pdf . November 4, 2013 .
  2. News: Death penalty statistics, country by country . Datablog . The Guardian . 2016 . 15 April 2018 . December 31, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151231222052/http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/mar/29/death-penalty-countries-world . live .
  3. News: Keating . Joshua E. . 22 September 2011 . The World's Top Executioners . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20171007120139/http://foreignpolicy.com/2011/09/22/the-worlds-top-executioners/ . October 7, 2017 . 12 January 2016 . Foreign Policy.
  4. News: Even by North Korean standards, this announcement of Jang Song Thaek's execution is intense . Washington Post . December 13, 2013 . December 12, 2013 . December 13, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131213004902/http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/12/12/even-by-north-korean-standards-this-announcement-of-jang-song-thaeks-execution-is-intense/ . live .
  5. News: Seoul: Kim Jung Un Fires Uncle, Executes his Associates . Voice of Asia News . December 3, 2013 . December 3, 2013 . December 4, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131204131807/http://www.voanews.com/content/reu-kim-jong-un-uncle-major-figure-ruling-party-believed-dismissed/1802333.html . live .
  6. Kirby . Michael Donald . Michael Kirby (judge) . Biserko . Sonja . Sonja Biserko . Darusman . Marzuki . Marzuki Darusman . 7 February 2014 . Report of the detailed findings of the commission of inquiry on human rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea . live . . https://web.archive.org/web/20140227104633/http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/HRCouncil/CoIDPRK/Report/A.HRC.25.CRP.1_ENG.doc . February 27, 2014.
  7. Web site: 2023-12-23 . Publicly executed for killing a woman while trying to steal beans . 2024-06-30 . Radio Free Asia.
  8. Web site: 2023-10-03 . North Korea executes warehouse manager for stealing penicillin. 2024-06-30 . Radio Free Asia.
  9. Web site: 2023-09-05 . North Korea publicly executes 9 people for running beef smuggling ring . 2024-03-06 . Radio Free Asia.
  10. News: Soni . Mallika . 31 March 2023 . North Korea executes pregnant woman for pointing at Kim Jong-il's portrait . Hindustan Times.
  11. Web site: North Korea publicly executes 2 teenagers for distributing South Korean movies .
  12. Web site: North Korea publicly executed 22-year-old man for watching K-pop.
  13. Web site: A family's escape from North Korea through a minefield and stormy seas.
  14. Web site: Daughter of high-ranking N. Korean cadre executed for watching and distributing S. Korean videos . March 2022 .
  15. Web site: Ah . Ha Yoon . 12 March 2021 . Four publicly executed in Pyongyang on charges of distributing "illegal video materials" . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210512060211/https://www.dailynk.com/english/four-publicly-executed-pyongyang-charges-distributing-illegal-video-materials/ . May 12, 2021 . May 15, 2021 . Daily NK.
  16. Web site: North Korea Publicly Executes Six for Sex Trafficking, Including Four Officials. 6 August 2020. Radio Free Asia. September 13, 2020. September 3, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200903114927/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/execution-08062020202000.html. live.
  17. Web site: North Korea Executes Couple For Trying to Escape to South During COVID-19 Emergency. 22 May 2020. Radio Free Asia. August 4, 2020. August 6, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200806160611/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/escape-05222020185630.html. live.
  18. Web site: North Korea Executes Three Officials For Theft of Emergency Food Supplies. April 2020. Radio Free Asia. August 4, 2020. September 29, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200929075727/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/executions-04062020191909.html. live.
  19. Web site: North Korea executes top official for leaving coronavirus quarantine to go to baths. 13 February 2020. metro.co.uk. February 15, 2020. February 15, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200215130742/https://metro.co.uk/2020/02/13/north-korea-executes-top-official-leaving-coronavirus-quarantine-go-baths-12233603/. live.
  20. Web site: North Korea Stages Public Executions to Strengthen 'Social Order'. 10 April 2019. Radio Free Asia. February 15, 2020. December 3, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191203030325/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/executions-04102019175353.html. live.
  21. Web site: North Korean Inmate Executed By Firing Squad For Killing Prison Guard. 17 January 2019. www.ibtimes.com. February 15, 2020. January 17, 2019. https://archive.today/20190117171743/https://www.ibtimes.com/north-korean-inmate-executed-firing-squad-killing-prison-guard-2753387. live.
  22. Web site: N.Korea's State Guesthouse Chief Executed in Public. 12 February 2019. The Chosun Ilbo. March 20, 2020. January 29, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200129080344/http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2019/02/12/2019021201708.html. live.
  23. Web site: Crackdown on superstitious behavior leads to life sentence for unlucky fortune teller in North Korea . April 30, 2019 . September 11, 2021 . September 4, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190904124806/https://www.dailynk.com/english/crackdown-on-superstitious-behavior-leads-to-life-sentence-for-unlucky-fortune-teller-in-north-korea/ . live .
  24. Web site: Ah. Ha Yoon. 2018-12-19. Fortune teller executed by firing squad in North Korea. 2021-09-11. Daily NK. en-US. September 21, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200921092830/https://www.dailynk.com/english/fortune-teller-executed-by-firing-squad/. live.
  25. Web site: North Korean army oil embezzler sentenced to execution . February 12, 2018 . September 11, 2021 . September 11, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210911165753/https://www.dailynk.com/english/north-korean-army-oil-embezzler-se/ . live .
  26. Web site: Report: N. Korea executes officials with anti-aircraft guns for 'enraging' Kim Jong Un. CNBC. 27 February 2017. 29 October 2017. March 20, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200320093611/https://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/27/report-n-korea-executes-officials-for-enraging-kim-jong-un.html. live.
  27. Web site: Extortion caper ends in execution for North Korean resident . October 31, 2017 . September 11, 2021 . September 11, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210911165635/https://www.dailynk.com/english/extortion-caper-ends-in-execution/ . live .
  28. Web site: Organized Persecution: Documenting Religious Freedom Violations in North Korea . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210911165632/https://www.uscirf.gov/sites/default/files/2021-08/2021%20Organized%20Persecution%20-%20Documenting%20Religious%20Freedom%20Violations%20in%20North%20Korea.pdf . September 11, 2021 . September 11, 2021.
  29. Web site: Organized Persecution: Documenting Religious Freedom Violations in North Korea . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210818203519/https://www.uscirf.gov/sites/default/files/2021-08/2021%20Organized%20Persecution%20-%20Documenting%20Religious%20Freedom%20Violations%20in%20North%20Korea.pdf . August 18, 2021 . September 11, 2021.
  30. Web site: North Korea executes 10 people who 'secretly used phones to call outside world' . . June 23, 2021 . September 11, 2021 . July 22, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210722165344/https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/north-korea-executes-10-people-24379984 . live .
  31. Web site: August 18, 2021 . North Korea tortures and executes Christians, USCIRF says . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210910023202/https://www.jpost.com/international/north-korea-tortures-and-executes-christians-uscirf-says-677080 . September 10, 2021 . 2021-09-11 . The Jerusalem Post.
  32. Web site: Executions in January 2011 . March 20, 2020 . April 15, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200415144842/http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/jan11.html . live .
  33. Web site: Another Public Execution Video from N.Korea Aired .
  34. Web site: A. Yang Jung. 2006-06-27. "The Mid-May Public Execution of a Discharged Soldier". 2021-09-11. Daily NK. en-US. February 10, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210210222943/https://www.dailynk.com/english/the-midmay-public-execution-of-a-d/. live.
  35. Web site: Video Captures Public Executions in North Korea .
  36. Web site: 2005-03-16 . Public Execution of Choi Jae Gon, Park Myung Gil . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210228103758/https://www.dailynk.com/english/public-execution-of-choi-jae-gon-p/ . February 28, 2021 . 2021-09-11 . . en-US.
  37. Web site: NK. Daily. 2005-03-11. Crackdowns, Public Executions on Sino-Korean Border. 2021-09-11. Daily NK. en-US. September 4, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190904092559/https://www.dailynk.com/english/crackdowns-public-executions-on-si/. live.
  38. News: December 6, 2006 . 北 엽기 연쇄살인 '박명식 사건' 아시나요? . Do you know the bizarre North Korean 'Park Myung-sik serial murder' case? . https://archive.today/20220109120812/https://www.dailynk.com/%E5%8C%97-%EC%97%BD%EA%B8%B0-%EC%97%B0%EC%87%84%EC%82%B4%EC%9D%B8-%EB%B0%95%EB%AA%85%EC%8B%9D-%EC%82%AC%EA%B1%B4-%EC%95%84%EC%8B%9C/ . January 9, 2022 . . ko.
  39. News: 2020-10-15 . ja:悲運の女優 禹仁姫（ウ・インヒ）の顔写真 日本で相次いで見つかる . Photos of the unfortunate actress Woo In-hee are found one after another in Japan . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20201125024101/https://www.koreaworldtimes.com/topics/news/7962/ . November 25, 2020 . 2020-10-16 . KoreaWorldTimes . ja.
  40. https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/humanrightsreport/index.htm?year=2012&dlid=204210 "Korea, Democratic People's Republic of"
  41. News: Rogers . Simon . Chalabi . Mona . Death penalty statistics, country by country . . 2013-12-13 . 2015-12-13 . December 31, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151231222052/http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/mar/29/death-penalty-countries-world . live .
  42. Web site: The Strange Tale of Yeonmi Park. 2020-12-10. thediplomat.com. en-US. September 13, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180913191150/https://thediplomat.com/2014/12/the-strange-tale-of-yeonmi-park/. live.
  43. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,313226,00.html "150,000 Witness North Korea Execution of Factory Boss Whose Crime Was Making International Phone Calls"
  44. https://www.amnesty.org.au/news/comments/10245/ Public executions by North Korea is another injustice
  45. Web site: North Korea resumes public executions . December 19, 2007 . November 26, 2007 . A non-profit organization work towards realization of Human rights and protects crime against humanity . English-language version of Pravda . July 16, 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090716232318/http://english.pravda.ru/world/101627-public_execution-0 . live .
  46. http://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/executions-01242011112449.html "Public Executions over Leaflets"
  47. Web site: MAPPING THE FATE OF THE DEAD: KILLINGS AND BURIALS IN NORTH KOREA. Transitional Justice Working Group. 10 June 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190611233833/https://en.tjwg.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2019-Report-Mapping-the-Fate-of-the-Dead-Killings-and-Burials-in-North-Korea.pdf. June 11, 2019. dead.
  48. News: North Korea: Hundreds of public execution sites identified, says report. BBC News. June 11, 2019 . 11 June 2019. June 12, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190612002138/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-48590691. live.
  49. News: Amnesty: Torture, Execution Rampant in Vast N. Korea Prisons . Voice of Asia News . December 13, 2013 . December 4, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131213054017/http://www.voanews.com/content/amnesty-international-torture-execution-rampant-vask-north-korea-prisons/1803922.html . December 13, 2013 . dead .
  50. Web site: North Korea: A case to answer – a call to act. Christian Solidarity Worldwide. June 20, 2007. December 13, 2013. 36–37. October 21, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131021204741/http://docs-eu.livesiteadmin.com/c8880e0f-f6ed-4585-8f09-4e4b6d11e698/north-korea-a-case-to-answer-a-call-to-act.pdf. live.

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