Pyongyang: North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has reportedly banned the use of the word ‘hamburger’ along with several other Anglicised terms, in a move to reinforce its socialist ideology and shield its citizens from perceived Western influences.
As per foreign media reports, the tour guides at the country’s new Wonsan beach-side resort have been instructed to avoid using words popular in the West and neighbouring South Korea when interacting with the visitor, especially foreigners.
According to a foreign media, the tour guides, enrolled in a rigorous state-run training programme, are being taught to use distinctly North Korean vocabulary. For instance, they must say ‘dajin-gogi gyeopppang (double bread with ground beef)’ instead of ‘hamburger’, ‘eseukimo’ instead of ‘ice cream’, and refer to karaoke machines as ‘on-screen accompaniment machines’.
The linguistic purge by the North Korean regime is described as a crackdown on foreign influences in the country. Reportedly, the state has intensified its repression over the last decade, particularly targeting citizens attempting to access foreign media. Harsh punishments, including public executions, have been meted out to those caught consuming or sharing such content.
A major UN report has found that North Korea has tightened its grip on imports of foreign media in recent years, orchestrating public executions to ‘instil fear’ in the public. Since 2015, laws have been introduced criminalising the access and sharing of information from ‘hostile’ nations and the use of linguistic expressions not aligned with prescribed socialist ideology and culture.
Further, under these laws, watching foreign films, listening to music, or sharing TV dramas from overseas may warrant severe penalties. The crackdowns against foreign information have intensified since 2018 and became even harsher from 2020, resulting in several public executions. The report assessed that ‘enjoyment of freedom of expression and access to information have rapidly regressed’ in recent years. A government task force has increasingly been employed to raid houses in search of ‘anti-socialist’ materials.
Earlier, during the Covid-19 pandemic and the restrictions that came with it, certain North Koreans were able to avoid penalties for accessing banned media by bribing authorities. According to the defectors who left North Korea prior to the pandemic, people apprehended for consuming foreign media were let go after undergoing ‘revolutionary’ education. However, the North Korean government has recently intensified its crackdown on foreign media imports. In an effort to instil fear among the population, the state has begun organising public trials and executions. Despite these heightened risks, reports indicated that North Koreans continue to access and consume banned information.