Why North Korean Olympians are in trouble for 'smile' selfies

Selfie with rival attracts worldwide attention

“A selfie with the national flags of both Koreas and a Samsung phone,” said the English edition of the South Korean daily JongAng Ilbo.

Samsung Electronics, official partner of the Olympic Games, had provided an Olympic edition of its foldable Galaxy Z Flip6 to “all approximately 17,000 people” except North Korea.

At the time, the South Korean government said that providing the smartphones to North Korean Olympic athletes could violate United Nations sanctions related to Pyongyang's weapons program.

North Korean athletes undergo “cleansing” after the Olympic Games

Seoul's Foreign Ministry said a UN Security Council resolution prohibits the “direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer of any industrial machinery to North Korea.”

During the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, North Korea also refused to accept Samsung smartphones provided by the organizers.

Given that relations between the two Koreas have been at their lowest point in years, the athletes' selfie could only be interpreted as a betrayal in dictator Kim Jong Un's North Korea.

Possible penalties for violations of guidelines

Since their return on August 15, the North Korean Olympic team has undergone a month-long “cleansing” of “exposure to contamination.” Daily NK reported.

The process is said to be a three-stage ideological assessment carried out by the country's Ministry of Sports, the aim of which is to eliminate any remaining influence of a “non-socialist” culture.

Other North Korean athletes also undergo a month-long ideological evaluation process.

Athletes are warned about interactions

Athletes were reportedly instructed not to have contact with South Koreans or other foreign participants during the Olympics.

If athletes violate these guidelines, they may face penalties, although the exact nature of those penalties is still unclear.

When the North Korean soccer team failed to score a single goal at the 2010 World Cup, it was publicly reprimanded and subjected to a “six-hour barrage of criticism,” according to the telegraph.