Wearing shorts, especially during the hot summer, is something many people worldwide take for granted. But in North Korea, wearing shorts with a length above the knee may get you in trouble for violating “socialist etiquette” by sporting what authorities describe as “capitalist fashion.” However, the rule applies only to women, and North Korean men can wear shorts as they please.

North Korea punishes women for wearing shorts, declaring them ‘capitalist fashion’ https://t.co/YSQ6A1t9mU pic.twitter.com/L9xg7cSqFa

— Radio Free Asia (@RadioFreeAsia) August 10, 2023

The North Korean government’s latest campaign against what they see as “anti-socialist behavior” serves as another example of Pyongyang strictly implementing its draconian Rejection of Reactionary Thought and Culture Act, passed in 2020 with the intention of removing any activities deemed to be South Korean, foreign, or capitalist cultural practices.

Although the North Korean authorities used this vaguely-written law to arrest and prosecute North Koreans who watch, listen to, and distribute South Korean and Western media, the government has also used it to crack down on window tinting, teaching young people how to dance, changing hair color, wearing unapproved clothing styles, and speaking and texting using South Korean slang or word spellings.

In what could be one of North Korea's strangest rules yet, Kim Jong-Un has taken it upon himself to ban the wearing of shorts.

But strangely, the ban only applies to women. The Supreme Leader says women wearing shorts amounts to 'capitalist fashion'. pic.twitter.com/L4VImD1nzn

— Metro (@MetroUK) August 16, 2023

The punishment for violating this law ranges from lengthy prison sentences to execution. While the rule technically applies to North Korean men and women, the crackdown is selectively applied against women wearing shorts. A resident in the northwestern province of North Pyongan told the Korean Service of Radio Free Asia that the severe measures were meant to preserve the tradition of socialist etiquette and lifestyle, grounded upon North Korea’s own interpretation of Communist theory.

“As more and more women wear shorts in the cities, including here in Sinuiju, the authorities are writing them up for violations of dress etiquette,” the resident said, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “Yesterday, a police patrol arrested ten women in the marketplace for wearing shorts. They had to write a statement of self-criticism and sign a document saying they would face legal consequences if they were caught wearing shorts again.”

Women in North Korea typically work as breadwinners who strive to earn money for their families, as males often report to their government-assigned jobs, where their salaries are not enough to live on, forcing women to take jobs on the side to make ends meet. The resident said that some citizens are upset that the authorities won’t let women wear what they want during the hot summer, given the responsibility that falls on them.

“The residents complain about authorities, who confine and terrorize these women who are responsible for their families’ livelihood, making them spend all day in the police station just because they wore shorts.” the resident said.

Another resident, this time from the province of South Pyongan, north of the capital Pyongyang, said that because of a heat wave in the country, more women are wearing shorts in public.

“In response, the authorities are stopping women who wear shorts on the streets, saying that it is not in line with socialist tradition and lifestyle,” the resident said.

She also said that the authorities have arrested women before for their fashion choices.

“A few years ago, they were cracking down on wide-legged skirt pants, saying they were Japanese fashion,” she said. “Many women are complaining, asking why men can wear shorts and women can’t. They are saying that the authorities are discriminating against us.”

In May 2022, the country banned skinny jeans, piercings, and leather coats. There was also a crackdown on the distribution of foreign movies, with reports of one man being sentenced to death for smuggling in the movie Squid Game.