North Korea Initiates ‘Forgiveness Campaign’, Urges Crime Confessions in Pyongyang

North Korea promotes self-reporting by integrating surveillance, punishment, and educational propaganda to curb the internal spread of Korean culture.

A senior official from the Ministry of Social Security in the Mangyongdae District of Pyongyang City briefing on crimes against socialism in the region / SAND Institute English Newsletter Team

Footage acquired by the SAND Institute reveals a campaign in Pyongyang City targeting the eradication of anti-socialist and unsocial behaviors. The footage, produced in the latter half of 2022, seems to have been aired within North Korea. It states that actions against socialism “erode unity, disrupt public order, and diminish the authority of the party and nation,” demanding their complete suppression and elimination.

From early March to mid-June, Mangyongdae District saw intensified patrols, even in alleys, and through campaigns of legal education and civic political initiatives, uncovered 140 anti-socialist crimes. Similarly, in Sosong District, numerous propaganda brigades vigorously spread awareness among about 42,000 people regarding the dangers of anti-socialist and unsocial practices across hundreds of factories, workplaces, and two routes of the Pyongyang Trolleybus system.

The campaign led to over a thousand residents and students reflecting on their past illegal acts, with around a hundred confessing to their deeds.

Women propaganda agents from Sosong District in Pyongyang City conducting a campaign to eradicate anti-socialist behavior / SAND Institute English Newsletter Team

Propaganda efforts and strict enforcement in other parts of Pyongyang City, such as the Taedonggang and Hyongjesan Districts, have also resulted in the identification of numerous criminal activities.