North Korea police caught singing banned songs and using slang, authorities crack down
North Korean authorities have launched a discipline crackdown on police officers caught singing songs of unknown or unauthorized origin and using crude slang, after finding that officers tasked with policing the public’s behavior were engaging in the very same conduct they were meant to suppre
Daily NK
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North Korean authorities have launched a discipline crackdown on police officers caught singing songs of unknown or unauthorized origin and using crude slang, after finding that officers tasked with policing the public’s behavior were engaging in the very same conduct they were meant to suppress.
A source in Ryanggang province said Thursday that the provincial security bureau, the state police organ responsible for public order and ideological enforcement, held a Saturday political study session on June 13 titled “On firmly establishing a militant lifestyle among security officers.” The session flagged two specific problems: officers singing songs of unknown or distorted origin, and officers freely using vulgar or slang terms in front of the public.
“The study session pointed out that some unprepared officers mistakenly think it is sophisticated to sing songs that other people don’t know, and are singing songs of unknown or distorted origin,” the source said.
Authorities classified the behavior not as a personal quirk or minor lapse but as ideological laxity, a term used in North Korea to describe a weakening of political loyalty and discipline. Officers singing distorted or unauthorized songs, the session argued, could be a sign of ideological corruption.
Parody songs and street slang spreading despite controls
The practice of altering official song lyrics is not new among the North Korean public. People have long been known to privately rewrite the words of state-approved songs to express frustration or cynicism about daily life. The source said the phenomenon has evolved over time: where people once replaced entire sets of lyrics, they now more commonly alter individual lines or melodies, making the changes subtler and harder to detect.
One example cited involves a well-known patriotic song whose lyrics, which speak of realizing how precious the homeland is, have been reworded by some to imply the state should recognize how precious its people are. Another popular song, “Let Us Raise a Toast,” originally contains a line praising the Workers’ Party of Korea. People have been known to replace that line with words about their wives and mothers-in-law. A third example involves “The Green Pines of Namsan,” a revolutionary song credited to Kim Hyong Jik, the father of Kim Il Sung, whose lyrical melody some have reworked into an upbeat disco-style arrangement.
The security bureau expressed alarm that the officers responsible for cracking down on such behavior among the public were instead participating in it or at least turning a blind eye.
The slang issue drew equal concern. The session singled out officers assigned to market oversight who had been using a widely known street term for North Korean won currency without hesitation, even during enforcement operations. Officials argued that officers using the same informal language as the people they are policing undermines their authority and their capacity for ideological control.
“The study session repeatedly stressed that officers must set an example in front of the public, and demanded they act in a way that is worthy of the uniform they wear,” the source said. “Ultimately, this study session was intended to tighten the ideological discipline of the officers who control the public and to strictly regulate their speech and conduct.”
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