North Korea

How are Christians persecuted in North Korea?

• North Korean Christians must keep their faith an absolute secret – Christians often won’t even tell their partners or children about their faith for fear of discovery. One secret believer shared, “I decided to gather all my courage and tell [my wife] my deepest secret. She started to cry, because she had been a secret believer all her life.”
• Meeting with other Christians is almost impossible, as there is always someone watching. North Korea has a network of secret police, but even your neighbours could report you for suspicious behaviour.
• Owning a Bible is also considered a serious crime, and those who have one keep it hidden. Hee Young*, a secret believer, explains, “Because of the many sudden and random house searches, we had to hide the Bibles in our home. Each Bible had a paper cover, with images of Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il, to keep them from raising suspicion.”
• If a North Korean Christian is discovered, they could be killed instantly.
• If they are not killed, a Christian will be arrested and imprisoned. Thousands of Christians are being held in North Korea’s horrific labour camps where they are forced to carry out hard labour. Many die in these camps.
• A Christian’s entire family are likely to be arrested along with them, even if they are not Christians.
• Many North Koreans make the dangerous and illegal journey over the border into China in search of food, medicines and other supplies to take back to their families. If they are caught on their return, they may be asked if they have had any contact with Christians. If they have, they will face particularly severe punishment.
• If a North Korean has a family background that shows any connection to Christianity, they will be denied membership of the ruling party and given the worst jobs.

• Although their faith comes with terrible risks, there are hundreds of thousands of secret believers in North Korea. One North Korean secret believer shares, “Despite these dangers, the underground church in North Korea is alive. It worships not with sound, but with whispered prayers and memorised Scripture. Believers continue to follow Christ with quiet courage, deep faith and a willingness to give everything for the sake of the gospel.”

Why are Christians persecuted in North Korea?

• North Korea is ruled by the Kim family who expect to be worshipped and obeyed like gods. A North Korean choosing to believe in any other god is seen as a threat to them.
• While there are a few church buildings in the capital Pyongyang that hold services, these are primarily used as propaganda, to try to demonstrate freedom of religion in North Korea to other nations.
• In December 2020, ‘anti-reactionary thought laws’ were introduced which made it clear that being a Christian or owning a Bible are seen as criminal acts and will have severe consequences.

Who is particularly vulnerable in North Korea?

• Every Christian here faces extreme persecution. The border area with China has previously been seen as a particularly dangerous area due to Christians crossing back and forth, but it is harder to escape than it used to be due to security around the border being strengthened.

What has changed in North Korea in the past year?

• North Korea remains number one on the World Watch List – a position it has held almost every year since 2002.
• There has been a marginal drop in violence compared to last year, with fewer reports of police raids against Christians. However, given the difficulty in obtaining reports from labour camps, this does not mean an improvement for believers in the country.
• The regime has strengthened its military capabilities, engaged in selective diplomatic interactions, and implemented internal policy changes. Meanwhile, the everyday life of its citizens remains intensely hard, including the devastating impact of its ongoing humanitarian crisis. The agenda behind all this is what it’s always been: to strengthen the country’s self-reliance as well as its strategic positioning on the world stage. For the country’s secret believers, that means continued repression and ongoing, extreme danger.
• In early 2025, South Korea requested the return of missionary Choi Chun-gil, who has been in prison in North Korea for ten years. At the time of writing, the request has not been granted.

How can I help Christians in North Korea?

• Please keep praying for your brothers and sisters from North Korea. Your prayers make an enormous difference to those following Jesus no matter the cost. Jung Jik*, a North Korean escapee, says: “God uses your prayers. There still is a large underground church. Because you pray, many people are miraculously healed, and they experience God’s power.”

Open Doors seeks to strengthen secret believers in North Korea through networks outside the country. This includes emergency relief aid, Christian materials, Christian radio broadcasts, and shelter and training for those who have fled the country.

*Names changed.