70,000 Christians Jailed For Owning Bibles

“We have not heard any reports of improvement for Christians in the country and have no reason to believe anything has changed. The regime still has up to 70,000 Christians locked away in virtual concentration camps.”

Ryan Morgan, an analyst with International Christian Concern Asia is talking about North Korea where Christians are still imprisoned for life, for offenses as minor as simply possessing a Bible.

“We’re hoping and praying this changes soon, but we haven’t seen any sign of it yet,” Morgan said. Morgan pointed to a document from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom which states that North Korea views those having faith as “potential security threats.” The document also claims that the Kim Jung Un regime is providing bounties for any person supplying details that would trigger the public arrest of people distributing Christian literature. Open Doors, an advocacy organization for Christians facing persecution throughout the world claims that North Korea is the most severe perescutor of Christians on the planet. “Still the most hostile country in which to live and practice the Christian faith, there are reports of many Christians arrested, with at least 25 percent of Christians believed to be languishing in labor camps for their refusal to worship founder Kim Il-Sung’s cult." Open Doors adds: “In North Korea, any form of worship to anyone other than the ‘Great Leader’ (Kim Il-Sung) and the ‘Supreme Leader’ (Kim Jong-il) is seen as treason. North Korean Christians are often arrested, tortured or even killed for their faith in Jesus Christ.”