North Korean Defector Exposes Shocking Abuse, Forced Worship in Schools
The brutal truth about North Korean schools has been laid bare by defector Bella Seo, who revealed the horrors students face behind the iron curtain of Kim Jong-un’s regime.
“Out of seven daily periods, two to three are dedicated to studying topics related to the Kim family,” Bella said. “The most critical subjects are the ‘Childhood and Revolutionary History’ of the Kim family.”
Even academic excellence in subjects like Korean, English, math or science mean little without loyalty to the ruling family.
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As reported by the Daily Express U.S., Bella’s testimony paints a disturbing picture. Despite North Korea’s claims of free education, students endure severe physical labor after school, carrying 25kg (55 pounds) sacks of sand and rocks to level schoolyards by hand.
“After working for about three hours after school, I would often be too exhausted to eat and would go straight to sleep,” she said. Adding to the misery, families were forced to cover hidden school expenses — sometimes skipping meals just to afford them — and failure to pay often led to public humiliation or beatings.
The abuse wasn’t limited to financial exploitation. Bella recounted beatings so routine they “seemed normal.” Girls bore the brunt of the violence, with some being dragged by their hair and slammed into desks for minor infractions.
Even worse, children were brainwashed from an early age to view America as “an eternal enemy we cannot coexist with,” and South Korea as “poor and starving” under American control. Bella eventually escaped by crossing mountains into China and making her way to freedom in South Korea, where she now lives.
The devastating reality revealed by Bella reveals a crucial truth: anti-God societies like North Korea inevitably create false gods. In the absence of faith in the true and living God, regimes elevate human leaders to divine status, demanding worship and loyalty that only belongs to God.
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According to Romans 1:25, such societies “changed the truth of God into a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator.” This spiritually dangerous path leads not only to suffering in this life but eternal consequences for those deceived.
Let Bella’s story remind us that the worship of man over God is always a sign of a nation in deep, deadly spiritual darkness.
James Lasher is staff writer for Charisma Media.