It was a heartwarming moment that captured the Olympic spirit, but North Korea’s table tennis champions may be punished for joining a selfie with their opponents from the South.
Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong, who won silver medals, are said to be undergoing “ideological evaluation” along with other athletes who returned from the Paris Games.
The assessment is a standard procedure to “cleanse” the team from “exposure to contamination” abroad, the Daily NK reported.
North Korean athletes were reportedly given “special instructions” not to interact with South Koreans or other foreign athletes in Paris, under threat of repercussions.
Since returning from France, the Olympic team is believed to be in the process of a three-stage ideological assessment process by the country’s ministry of sport.
It is said to last about a month, with the intention of purging any lingering influence of “non-socialist” culture.
Why the hell do we allow North Koreans to join us in anything internationally? Brutal dictatorships should not be enabled in any way
Precisely for the togetherness that you see in that picture…and NK had to see it as a threat, of course.
According to Daily NK, a media outlet specializing in North Korean affairs, the North’s delegation returned to Pyongyang on Aug. 15 and is going through what has been described as an ideological evaluation.
This is a standard procedure for North Koreans who have been exposed to non-communist cultures while abroad. The media outlet said that North Korea views staying in a non-communist country as a form of “exposure to contamination.”
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/sports/2024/08/600_381093.html
PS: found the article they cite https://www.dailynk.com/chinese/朝鲜运动员在奥林匹克跟韩国选手嬉笑自拍而/
Yeah, it’s pretty weird that they’re banning (rightly but not thoroughly enough) Russia, but North Korea, Israel, and China get to participate as equals with the countries that AREN’T currently committing genocide, starving millions, and doping like there’s no tomorrow.
It’s almost like the ACTUAL reasoning of the IOC is nonpublic and laundry based.
I’m pretty sure Russia only got banned because they had a state-sponsored doping system. Long as you don’t get caught with that, you can be as authoritarian as you want.
If that was true, how come China’s allowed to compete with no restrictions after having 8 of their swimmers test positive in Tokyo and more just weeks before the games?
