Kim Jong-Un has reportedly ordered a strict crackdown on women in North Korea suspected of having cosmetic breast implants, labeling such procedures as “unsocialist.” Undercover agents and neighborhood patrols are reportedly identifying women undergoing surgery as well as doctors performing them.
Labour Camps for Offenders
Women caught with breast implants, along with doctors performing illegal surgeries, face harsh punishments, including labour camp sentences. According to South Korean media outlet Daily NK, one doctor and two women were recently put on trial for carrying out and receiving breast augmentation procedures.
Authorities intercepted the doctor performing the procedure at home, using silicone that he had smuggled in from China.
Public Trial Sparks Controversy
The authorities held the trial in the cultural hall of central Sariwon and presented medical tools, imported silicone, and cash as evidence. They forced the doctor and the woman to stand in a submissive posture during the proceedings.
Authorities described the cosmetic procedures as a violation of socialist principles, stating that capitalist and bourgeois ideas influenced them. The judge announced strict punishments for those involved and indicated that similar acts would be treated as anti-socialist behavior.
Heightened Surveillance and Investigations
North Korean authorities have announced that women will face intensive investigations to determine if they have undergone cosmetic procedures. Security officers have conducted physical examinations of women during trials, creating widespread fear.
The crackdown follows a rise in cosmetic procedures, including breast augmentation and double-eyelid surgery. The Ministry of Social Security directed that women undergoing these procedures reflect bourgeois ideology. Authorities deployed strike teams across central Pyongyang, arresting women and doctors and charging them with crimes, with possible labour camp sentences.
International Reaction
Amnesty International condemned the crackdown on unsocialist breast implants, stating that the North Korean regime controls lives and limits freedom and choice.
