North Koreans have been banned from laughing, going shopping and drinking as the country marks the 10th anniversary since the death of former leader Kim Jong-il.
The citizens have been restricted from carrying out the mentioned activities for a period of 11 days which starts on Friday, December 17.
Kim Jong-il ruled North Korea from 1994-2011 before being succeeded by Kim Jong-un, his youngest son.
Radio Free Asia quoted a resident of Sinuiju, a border city of the country, who confirmed that the ban had been effected and a crack down had been launched at the start of December by North Korea police officers in readiness of the memorial period.
The resident said that all leisure activities had also been burned for the entire period and that offenders will be arrested, as it happens every year.
“In the past, many people who were caught drinking or being intoxicated during the mourning period were arrested and treated as ideological criminals. They were taken away and never seen again,” the local said.
On top of that, the North Koreans are also supposed not cry out aloud even if a family member dies within the 11 days of the anniversary.
“Even if your family member dies during the mourning period, you are not allowed to cry out loud and the body must be taken out after it’s over. People cannot even celebrate their own birthdays if they fall within the mourning period,” the Radio Free Asia source went on to explain.
In the past years, the mourning period of the late leader was carried out for 10 days. Jong-il died on December 17 in 2011 at the age of 69 after suffering a heart attack.
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