Free Republic

Young North Koreans have been warned they must follow traditional lifestyles and adhere to the country's dialect. The secluded state's official newspaper made the demand in a column as Pyongyang tries to eradicate cultural influences from South Korea. Kim Jong Un's regime is particularly focused on the speaking habits of millennials, with some mimicking their neighbours by referring to their husbands as "oppa" - a term that means "older brother". The Rodong Sinmun newspaper said North Korea's standard language is superior and young people must use it correctly - all while ensuring their clothes, hairstyle, music preferences and dancing styles...

Kim Jong-un’s 21-year-old nephew has been expressing increasing frustration of his life on-the-run and has begun to develop a habit of daytime drinking, media here reported Tuesday. “According to various sources, Kim Han-sol is under ‘iron-like’ protection at his mother’s house. This keeps him safe, but also makes him frustrated at the same time,” TV Chosun, a media outlet here said Monday. A video released online in March features a man claiming to be Kim Han-sol (Yonhap) “He has been telling the people around him that he is glad that his family is safe, but the protection program is suffocating....

North Korea has temporarily designated two more areas near the western maritime border with South Korea as "naval firing zones," raising the possibility of further artillery shelling in the Yellow Sea, informed sources said Wednesday. During a government-ruling party meeting held at the National Assembly, officials from the Defense Ministry briefed lawmakers that the communist country has designated an additional four-day naval firing period for the two zones effective from Feb. 5, according to sources privy to the meeting. "It is possible that the North may show further provocations considering the redesignation of the naval firing zone," the official said....