South Korea's pop culture and fashion trends have increasingly gained popularity in North Korea, with a growing inflow of pirated DVDs and TV dramas smuggled from China, a Seoul-based defector group said Friday.

The People for Successful Corean Reunification said the Korean "Hallyu" wave, a reference to the surging popularity of South Korean pop culture, has even hit a large population of the reclusive and tightly controlled communist state.

"People living in coastal areas in South Hwanghae Province can easily watch South Korean broadcasting, and some residents said they even watched the live coverage of the inaugural address of President Lee Myung-bak," a 38-year-old defector, who fled from the North last year, said in video shown during a seminar. "I think 99 percent of North Korean residents have seen South Korean dramas at least once or twice."

A North Korean defector from Shiniju, a northern gateway to the Chinese mainland, said the capitalist South's affluent lifestyle inspired him to flee from his homeland last year.

"I was intrigued by the fact that South Korea shown in the drama was so much different from where I lived, and I hoped to go to South Korea," said the 23-year-old, identified by his alias Lee Seong-il. "In the case of youngsters, it is easy to tell whether they have watched Korean dramas by their hairstyle. No matter how (authorities) instruct them to wear their hairstyles like 'socialists,' it is virtually useless."

Access to foreign pop culture is strictly banned for ordinary people in the isolated nation, with violators facing hefty fines or jail terms.

Kang Dong-wan, a researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said most of the videos were smuggled from China, the North's neighbor and major trade partner, with loose control over business activities near border areas.

"As (authorities) loosen control over moving regions for business purposes, distribution of videos (like South Korean dramas) is increasing," Kang said. "Not only residents in the border areas with China but also people across the nation, including Pyongyang, are believed to be watching these kinds of videos."

Source : Yoonhap News