Number of executions in North Korea rose dramatically during Covid – report | North Korea
North Korea significantly increased its use of the death penalty after closing its borders during the Covid-19 pandemic, using the isolation to increase killings once international scrutiny disappeared, according to a report mapping 13 years of executions under the country’s leader Kim Jong-un.
In the nearly five years after North Korea closed its borders in January 2020, the number of documented executions and death penalty cases increased by 117% compared to the same period before the closure. Transitional Justice Working Group (TJWG), a human rights NGO in Seoul.
The report also stated that the number of people executed or sentenced to death has more than tripled.
In the report, 46 execution areas were identified and the coordinates of 40 of them were announced. Additionally, between December 2011 and December 2024, when Kim was leader, 144 cases were documented, including 136 executions involving at least 358 people; Approximately 70% of executions were carried out in public, with crowds forced to watch.
The report was compiled based on testimonies from 265 North Korean defectors living in 51 cities and countries over a 13-year period and information from five North Korea-focused media outlets with inside sources.
At the beginning of the Covid-19 outbreak, North Korea isolated itself from the outside world by closing its borders to almost all trade and visitors.
The report alleges that the regime is exploiting the pandemic and lack of international scrutiny to increase the number of “crimes” that carry the death penalty.
Cases of death sentences or executions linked to the use, promotion, or dissemination of foreign culture and information, including South Korean films, dramas, and music, as well as religious and “superstitious” practices, have increased by 250%, making them the most common capital offenses. Executions and death sentences for people previously convicted of murder, the most common death penalty crime, dropped by 44%.
These allegations echoed previous reports that pointed to an increase in penalties, including penalties for watching South Korean TV shows or listening to K-pop.
In February, Amnesty International testimonies It states that watching global K-drama hits such as Crash Landing on You and Squid Game or listening to K-pop groups such as BTS “can lead to the harshest penalties, including death.”
Citing testimonies from people who have recently fled North Korea, Amnesty International said the regime had created a “climate of fear” in which the consumption of South Korean culture was seen as a serious crime.
The TJWG report said political executions for violating Kim’s orders or criticizing the leader, the ruling Workers’ party or the security services have risen sharply, with the number of people convicted rising by 600%.
According to the TJWG report, the North Korean leadership adapted its approach to capital punishment depending on the level of international pressure. For example, executions fell sharply in the years following UN discussions about referring Kim to the international criminal tribunal in The Hague.
Executions also spread geographically during the epidemic. Before Covid, documented executions occurred in eight sites, mostly concentrated in Pyongyang and three northeastern provinces bordering China. After the border was closed, they spread to 19 regions.
TJWG legal analyst Ethan Hee-seok Shin called on the international community to do more to “deter and punish this crime against humanity” and “hold those responsible accountable under international criminal law.”
In a press release, the TJWG warned that executions could intensify as the regime prepares for a fourth-generation hereditary succession, with Kim’s teenage daughter, referred to as Ju-ae, positioned as his heir.
TJWG plans to present its findings at the World Congress Against the Death Penalty in Paris this summer.
