The distributor has been sentenced to death, while the student who consumed it has received life sentence. The other students have to work 5 years in hard labor.

North Korean authorities has sentenced one man to death, stating he smuggled and sold copies of the Netflix series “Squid Game” in the country. It happened after authorities caught seven high school students watching the South Korean show. The student who bought the pendrive received a life sentence, while six other students who watched the show have been sentenced to five years hard labor. Teachers and school administrators have also been fired after the incident and face banishment to work in remote mines.

Despite the government’s crackdown, one source told RFA that among the seven arrested students, one with rich parents was able to avoid punishment because they bribed the authorities with 3 thousand dollars. The global hit show Squid Game got into the reclusive country not so long ago, despite the best efforts of authorities to keep out foreign media, especially from the US and South Korea. They began spreading among the people on flash drives and SD cards. The media attempted to contact Netflix for comment but received no response.

North Korea passed a law in December last year, which bans the introduction and distribution of foreign cultural materials such as movies, plays, music and books in the country. 444 says this is primarily aimed to prevent the spread of news and materials from South Korea and the United States, and punishing those who distribute or consume it.

Source: RFA