Christians caught with Bible in North Korea face death, prison – including children

As many as 70,000 Christians have been imprisoned in camps along with believers from other religions, according to a new report

People who have been arrested for religious crimes have reportedly faced detention and forced labour, torture, sexual violence, and death

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Published: 6:44pm, 27 May 2023Updated: 12:45pm, 30 May 2023

North Korea is notorious for the cruelty it inflicts on people deemed undesirable by the state. In the Hermit Kingdom that prizes weaponry over its own people, many of whom are starving and live in abject poverty, tens of thousands of Christians are said to be languishing in prisons.

A recently released US Department of State report notes that while North Korea constitutionally allows for religious freedom, there is no such thing in practice.

The constitution vaguely states that religion must not harm the state or social order, giving authorities room to target those who seek to openly follow their faith.

The report from the US State Department’s Office of International Religious Freedom, citing research conducted by non-governmental organisations which have gathered testimony from defectors, says as many as 70,000 Christians have been imprisoned in camps along with those believers from other religions.

One NGO, Open Doors USA, has reported that for Christians in North Korea, life is a “constant cauldron of pressure” and “capture or death is only a mistake away”.