[3][4][5] According to multiple resolutions which have been passed by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, the North Korean government considers religious activities political crimes,[6] because they could challenge the personality cult of Kim Il Sung and his family.

[7][8][9] The Workers' Party of Korea also considers religion a tool of American imperialism and the North Korean state uses this argument to justify its activities.

[14] In a study of 117 North Koreans who had been affected by religious persecution which was conducted by the Korea Future Initiative, it was found that Christians made up about 80% of the people who were surveyed.

[19] According to AsiaNews, during Kim Il Sung's administration, all non-foreign Catholic priests were executed,[20] and Protestant leaders who did not renounce their faith were purged as "American spies.

[3] For example, Ri Hyon-ok was allegedly publicly executed in Ryongchon on June 16, 2009, for giving out Bibles, while her husband and children were deported to the Hoeryong political prison camp.

[34][35][36] In 2014, an American citizen, Jeffrey Edward Fowle, was detained for several months for proselytism after authorities discovered him leaving a Bible behind in a public restroom during his vacation in the country.