The same nation has been on top of Open Door´s World Watch-list for ten consecutive years. International observers think it may remain the world´s greatest persecutor of Christians for ten more years if the political system is not changed. If you want to serve in a really tough environment, this nation is one of your best options.
– One of the remaining Communist states, North Korea is vehemently opposed to religion of any kind. Christians are classified as hostile and face arrest, detention, torture, even public execution. There is a system of labor camps including the renowned prison No. 15, which reportedly houses 6,000 persecuted Christians alone. Despite the severe oppression, there is a growing underground church movement of an estimated 400,000 Christians, state the people behind the latest update of the World Watch List.
Business as usual
The description was approximately the same ten years ago. Then Kim Il-Sung, who is regarded as the founder of the North-Korean nation, governed the country with an iron fist. Since then both his son and his grandson have come to power. But the situation for Christians and other religious minorities has remained unchanged.
One Christian in North Korea reports that they are not able to help brother and sisters who have been abused by the police.
– Some have been tortured so much that they can no longer walk. Still helping them is not an option since it involves taking too big risks. The only thing we can do is to pray. We know that Jesus will not leave them nor forsake them, he says.
God can make changes
One observer Tentmaking Briefs has talked with says there are no signs that the regime will change in the foreseeable future.
– Humanly speaking there is not much hope for a change, but God can still do something. Two generations of Christians in North Korea have cried to the Lord for help. Brothers and sisters around the world join them in this fight. I believe the Lord can create something new in this nation just as he did when the iron curtain fell and communism perished, says the observer.
Another person who just visited North Korea speaks about the awful suffering he was witnessing:
– I´ve been to more than 40 nations, but I´ve never seen anything similar to the misery I met face to face in North Korea.
There are some job opportunities for foreigners who want to work in North Korea. One good contact point is Pyongyang University of Science and Technology that hires several professionals from abroad. Another option is Christian Friends of Korea, which is a registered charity in North Korea.
