Persecution of Christians in North Korea

Common card · No. 473870

The persecution of Christians in North Korea is an ongoing and systematic human rights violation in North Korea. According to multiple resolutions which have been passed by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, the North Korean government has "persistently persecuted" Christians outside of state-sanctioned religious organizations, because they could challenge the personality cult of Kim Il Sung and his family. The Workers' Party of Korea has cracked down on religious proselytizing since its founding, considering it a tool of "imperialist countries" who "dispach missionaries in order to invade other nations". The North Korean state uses this argument to justify its activities, with Kim Il Sung stating in 1946 that religion should be "subjected to the interests of the state". In 2002, it was estimated that there were 12,000 Protestants and 800 Catholics in North Korea, but South Korean and international church-related groups gave considerably higher estimates, such as 406,000 Christians.

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