2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea Date of Publication March 20, 2009 Authors Yeo‐sang Yoon, Sun‐young Han Publisher Sang‐hun Kim Publisher Database Center for North Korean Human Rights (NKDB) Registration Date May 8, 2007 Registration Number 300‐2007‐86 110-053 Samho building 3rd Floor, 30 Naeja-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul Phone 02‐723‐6045 Fax 02‐723‐6046 Website http://www.nkdb.org E‐mail [email protected] ISBN 978‐89‐93739‐06‐0 Quoting or citing the contents of the book without a permission of the authors and publisher is prohibited. The publication was made possible by the assistance and contribution provided by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom. NKDB-2009 White Paper 2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea Yeo-sang Yoon Director North Korean Human Rights Archives Sun-young Han Research Fellow Database Center for North Korean Human Rights On the Publication of the "2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" The North Korean Human Rights Archives (NKHRA) of the Database Center for North Korean Human Rights (NKDB) has published the "2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" following a similar one for 2008. The "2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" is a report on the human rights situation in North Korea based on the results of a survey of 2,047 North Korean defectors who have arrived in South Korea since 2007, as well as on analysis of 6,965 cases of human rights abuses in the North as of December 2008 (compared with 4,142 cases in 2007) and on information about 5,272 North Koreans involved in human rights abuses in the same year (compared with 3,131 in 2007). The details of these cases of human rights abuses in the North and information about concerned North Koreans are in the "NKDB Central Human Rights Database." Some 345, or 5.0 percent, of all human rights violations were related to religious persecution in 2008, up from 138 cases, or 3.3 percent, in 2007. Some 252, or 4.8 percent, of concerned North Koreans were involved in such persecution that year, compared with 177, or 5.7 percent, in 2007. No progress was made in the promotion of religious freedom in North Korea since the previous year. Religious oppression is ongoing with no signs of any improvement. There is a clearly increasing trend of cases of religious persecution. Despite this there has been virtually no outside intervention in North Korea's continuing denial of the freedom of religion nor its religious persecution nor outside support for victims. Whilst religious persecution is not new in the North but since On the Publication of the "2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" • 5 2000, there has been a slight change in the religious topography there. The number of unofficial, behind-the-scenes and clandestine religious activities has increased little by little despite the North’s anti-religious policies. Religious materials such as the Bible have continued to be imported. However the cases of religious persecution have also increased in number. Under these circumstances all religious people in South Korea and foreign countries, who want to do missionary work or engage in proselytizing in Korea, should urgently pay attention and give support to the North Korean people. For the second year running, the "White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" has been published in 2009 with the help of the Committee for the Reconciliation of the Korean People chaired by Most Rev. Lucas KIM Woon-hoe under the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea. I am grateful to the commission. I am also grateful to Lim Soon-hee, a research fellow at the NKHRA for her dedication to analyzing statistical data and putting together the tables for the white paper. I hope that the publication of the "2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" will contribute to promoting the freedom of religion in North Korea, and that religious people, both at home and abroad, will take an interest in and continue to support us so that the White Paper can be published every year. Last but not least, I want to express my thanks to North Korean defectors once again for their courage and cooperation in testifying for this White Paper. February 2009 Yeo-sang Yoon Director of the North Korean Human Rights Archives 6 • 2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea On the Publication of the "2008 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" The North Korean Human Rights Archives of the Database Center for North Korean Human Rights has published the "2008 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea." The lack of religious freedom and the level of religious persecution in North Korea have been considered dire for some time but no objective and systematic data gathering and analysis have been made until now. Whilst there is considerable empathy for the repression of religion in the North and many are very keen to carry out missionary work there, religious persons in South Korea have failed to focus on a continuous monitoring of the absence of religious freedoms and the persecution in the North and gathering objective data about them. Before we can take a serious interest in the religious situation and properly prepare for the proselytizing of the North it is vital to gather and analyze objective data on the status of religion there. It is only with such data that we can correctly understand the state of religious freedom and develop strategies and methods for missionary work in the North. There has been continuous persecution of religious believers in North Korea since the nation was divided. As a result, a large number of people have died as martyrs and many more have been incarcerated in political prison camps or other detention centers for a long time. Indifference to the victims of such religious persecution is intolerable to religious people. On the Publication of the "2008 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" • 7 Under these circumstances, the "White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" will be published every year with the goal of systematically gathering and analyzing data on the policy toward religion and religious freedom in the North, thereby accumulating basic data on the matter, preventing persecution of religious believers, and developing means of rescue for victims of religious persecution there. Our special thanks go to Committee for the reconciliation of the Korean People of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea for its support for our compilation of data for the "2008 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea." We hope that the publication of this white paper will spark a keener interest in and encourage support for the efforts to promote religious freedom in the North and rescue religious persecution victims there. We also hope that South Korean religious people will help us publish this white paper every year. February 2008 Yeo-sang Yoon President of the Database Center for North Korean Human Rights 8 • 2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea Table of Contents On the Publication of the "2009 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" • 5 On the Publication of the "2008 White Paper on Religious Freedom in North Korea" • 7 Ⅰ. Outline ￭ 13 1. Purpose and Need for Publication of the White Paper ·· 13 2. Research Methods ··································································· 15 3. Research Topics and Content ················································ 17 4. Expected Effects and Constraining Factors ························ 18 Ⅱ. Present Status of Religion in North Korea ￭ 22 1. What Religion Means in North Korea ·································· 22 2. North Korea's Religious Policy ·············································· 27 1) Changes in North Korea's Religious Policy ···················· 27 2) Religious Policy in North Korea by Period ··················· 30 3. Religious Activities in North Korea ······································ 41 1) Present Status of Religion in North Korea····················· 41 2) Religions in North Korea ·················································· 46 4. Religious Exchanges with Outside World ···························· 61 1) Inter-Korean Religious Exchanges by Period ················· 61 2) Religious Exchanges between International Religious Organizations and North Korea ······················ 67 Table of Contents • 9 Ⅲ. Present Status of Religious Freedom in North Korea ￭ 69 1. Level of Religious Freedom in North Korea······················· 69 1) Outline ················································································· 69 2) Present Status····································································· 74 2. Religious Persecution in North Korea ·································· 90 1) Research ·············································································· 90 2) Information on Religious Persecution Cases in North Korea··································································· 97 3) Information on North Koreans Involved in Religious Persecution ········································································ 106 4) Analysis of Religious Persecution Cases in North Korea································································· 136 Ⅳ. Conclusion and Suggestions ￭ 146 1. Conclusion ·············································································· 146 2. Suggestions ············································································· 149 ￭ Reference Data / 155 10 • 2009 White Paper