ANYONE caught celebrating Christmas in North Korea could be executed on the spot, a defector has revealed.
Western-hating Kim Jong-un has long tried to stamp out religion and instead wants his people to look at him as a God-like figure.
His crack team has been known to prosecute people for practicing religion – and Christians in particular have been persecuted.
Timothy Cho, who escaped North Korea twice and was imprisoned four times, said Christians risk celebrating Christmas at their own peril.
He said Christians are regarded as “political prisoners” – and practising the religion is viewed as “high treason”.
Cho, associated with 0pen Doors UK & Ireland, a charity that supports persecuted Christians globally, compared North Korea to the mythical cursed land of Narnia.
He told The Sun: “Underground Christians might celebrate in total secret singing some hymns very quietly and reading scripture but that’s it.
“The cost they would pay if they were discovered is dear.
“The minimum punishment would be being sent to a gulag prison camp and made to work hard labour or they could even be executed on the spot.
“According to Open Doors’ World Watch List, North Korea has been the most dangerous country for Christians for the past decade.”
North Korea has a reputation for being a hermit kingdom, and Kim has ruled with an iron fist as Supreme Leader since 2011.
The regime’s aversion to Western influence leads to restrictions such as only four state-owned TV channels and bans on foreign hairstyles and clothing.
Cho added: “There is no Christmas in North Korea.
“It reminds me of CS Lewis’ Narnia when he says it is a cursed land, where winter persists but Christmas has been absent for decades.
“That is exactly North Korea. I just can’t imagine celebrating Christmas in North Korea.
Cho shared an observation: “I once saw a Christmas tree in Pyongyang Square. However, this gesture is likely superficial as they may also display Christmas trees in state-sanctioned churches visited by foreign tourists.”
Many North Koreans who have never left the state have never even heard of Christmas.
Ji Hyun Park, who first escaped North Korea in 1998, said until she arrived in the UK she had no clue what Christmas was – and thought Boxing Day was a sporting event.
She told The Sun: “We never celebrated Christmas.
“North Korean people don’t know about Christmas, so same as me.
“I arrived in the UK in 2008 and I didn’t know about Christmas.
“So that’s why on the day me and my children went outside and I was shocked that it was empty, no people and no cars.
“We tried to go to the shopping centre but there was not a soul.”
Christmas-hating Kim will spend the day working and has banned anyone else from celebrating.
The crackpot despot instead demands North Koreans toast his dead grandmother’s birthday on December 24 – the wife of the state’s first Supreme Leader Kim Il-sung.
Kim Jong-suk died in 1949 in childbirth during the delivery of a stillborn girl.
Cho said: “One thing which is very interesting is that every year on December 24, all children, and even adults, have to sing their own version of a carol.
“They sing for the first Kim’s (Kim Jong-un’s grandfather’s) wife, Kim Jong-suk, because her birthday was December 24.
“Young people also take flowers to her statue.
“According to the Kim Dynasty, when the second Kim, Kim Jong-il, was born there was a giant star which appeared above his house.
“It portrays a story of Jesus and when his father died they said that he did not die.
“They say he lives forever in our hearts. So, he is portrayed as the eternal leader.
“The story is that he is a God who then came down here. His son, who was then born is mirrored on the story of Jesus’ birth.”
Three days after December 24, hermit kingdom residents can get the bunting out for Constitution Day.
But if they dare don a party hat or belt out a hymn on December 25, they face Kim’s wrath.
The tubby tyrant famously banned Christmas in 2016 and hasn’t looked back since.
But even before then, Christmas was not widely celebrated as the small Christian population has North Korea feared repercussions since the state was founded by Kim’s grandfather in 1948.
While the rest of the world lights up and tucks into a tasty dinner, for North Koreans it’s just another cold winter’s day.
And for Kim, it’s business as usual.
Michael Madden, founder of North Korea Leadership Watch, told The Sun: “With absolute certainty I can tell you that Kim Jong-un will be working on December 25.
“During the last few years, North Korea has convened multi-day plenary meetings of the Party Central Committee during the last full week of December.
“The Party Central Committee is technically the regime’s highest authority between party congress so its meetings are highly significant to DPRK political culture.
“On December 25, Kim might have a nicer family dinner than usual, but he will spend most of the day preparing his remarks and making decisions on agenda items for the Central Committee meeting.”
Even before 2016, Christmas was not a thing in the hermit kingdom.
Kim and his predecessors notoriously snub Western traditions, and that is the same for any sort of religion too.
Cho added: “I ask Christians in the UK when they sing carols, look at a Christmas tree and celebrate Christmas, that they will light a candle and pray for people in North Korea.”
Kim Jong-un’s succession crisis
KIM Jong-un has ruled North Korea with an iron first since 2011 – but concerns over his health have raised questions about who his heir will be.
The Supreme Leader, 40, is understood to suffer from high blood pressure and diabetes, clocking in at more than 20st despite being just 5ft 5ins.
His dad Kim Jong-il died from a heart attack in 2011, and his grandfather Kim Il-sung was killed by sudden cardiac arrest in 1994.
But despite his apparent ailing health, it seems Kim has yet to pick who will take over when he dies.
In the running is understood to be his daughter, Kim Ju-ae, his notorious sister Kim Yo-jong, or the eldest son he is claimed to have.
Ju-ae – thought to be 11 or 12 – appears to be undergoing successor training, having been pictured with her dad at missile tests and military parades.
But for years, Kim’s powerful sister has been tipped as his successor and has long worked closely with her brother.
Experts believe, however, Yo-jong may not be a direct heir and could instead be appointed leader in an interim capacity if Ju-ae is too young to take the reins.
Thought of as one of the most dangerous women in the world, Yo-jong has been known to order executions.
Both she and Ju-ae have been seen publicly by Kim’s side – but a third contender, Kim’s alleged son, is cloaked in mystery.
Rumours have persisted for years that Kim welcomed a son in 2010 – yet nothing is known about him.
Dr Adam Zulawnik, senior tutor of Korean Studies at the University of Melbourne, previously told The Sun: “Whether or not Kim has an eldest son has, in itself, been debated, with some theories indicating that he could be rearing him behind the scenes as a successor.
“This is based on the assumption that North Korea would follow a Confucian patriarchal model of male succession. Another possibility, however, is that Kim’s eldest son is somehow unsuitable for succession.
“This could be due to any number of reasons, ranging from the individual not being interested or even health issues.
“Mental health and developmental issues, in particular, are still highly stigmatised in many parts of the world, and so any learning disability would likely be enough to rule out succession.”
Dr Zulawnik believes that if Kim Ju-ae becomes leader, the only plausible explanation would be that the son does not actually exist or is not suitable.
