What Were the Consequences of Enforcing Harsh Laws Like in North Korea?

 

North Korean Law Arrests Teenage Girls for Watching South Korean Dramas

North Korean authorities have handcuffed and arrested teenage girls simply for watching South Korean dramas. The only crime they committed was watching these shows. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, North Korea's economic difficulties have led to increased unrest among its citizens, prompting the regime to intensify ideological education. The country is now facing global criticism for its harsh punishment, as it has unusually released footage of these severe measures. Let’s look at how other historically strict regimes that enforced harsh laws have fared.

Japan's Policy of Cultural Erasure to Control Korea

Japan forcibly annexed Korea through military power, sparking resistance from the Korean people. As the resistance grew stronger, Japan implemented a series of policies known as the Kōminka (imperial subjectification) to suppress Korean national consciousness and compel cooperation in its war efforts. It promoted the slogan “Japan and Korea as One Body” (Naeseon Ilche, 內鮮一體) and made Koreans recite the Imperial Rescript on the National Subjects (Hwangguk Sinmin Seosa, 皇國臣民誓詞), which declared, “We are subjects of the Great Japanese Empire. We shall unite and dedicate ourselves to the Emperor.” In 1938, they abolished Korean language education in schools and forbade Koreans from speaking their own language, mandating the use of Japanese only. They also enforced the adoption of Japanese names through the Sōshi-kaimei policy. Japan’s campaign to erase Korean identity was unprecedented in history. Furthermore, Japan required Koreans to raise the Japanese flag, bow to the imperial palace, visit Shinto shrines, and observe a moment of silence at noon. However, the harsher Japan’s suppression policies became, the stronger Korea’s independence movement grew. Eventually, Korea achieved independence from Japanese rule.

 

Korean Students Reciting the Imperial Rescript on the National Subjects

The Qin Dynasty’s Strict Laws to Maintain a Unified State

The Qin dynasty rose from a minor state on the fringes during the Warring States period to become a powerful empire through Legalism. Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, unified the country and ended the chaotic Warring States period. After unification, he began restructuring the system and imposed Qin’s cultural norms and practices on the newly conquered territories. As opposition to his policies grew, rebellions broke out in various regions. Qin Shi Huang believed that Confucian scholars were instigating these uprisings, so he ordered the burning of their books and executed many scholars in an event known as the Burning of Books and Burying of Scholars (Fenshu Kengru, 焚書坑儒). To maintain control, he enforced even stricter laws, but dissatisfaction among the people continued to rise. After Qin Shi Huang's death, the Qin dynasty quickly fell apart. Though the dynasty established order with strict laws, it ultimately lost the people's support and collapsed due to its excessive legal regulations.

An image showing the burning of books and the live burial of Confucian scholars.

 

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