A South Korean man watches a TV broadcasting news about two American journalists detained in North Korea at the Seoul Railway Station, in South Korea, Monday, June 8, 2009. North Korea's top court convicted the journalists and sentenced them to 12 years in a prison Monday, intensifying the reclusive nation's confrontation with the United States. The headline reads "North Korea convicted two American journalists and sentenced them to 12 years in a prison." (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)Truly something worth applauding. After going to North Korea a couple of days earlier, former US president, Bill Clinton, returns home with the two journalist that were captured by North Korea and charged with 12 years of hard labour. Apparently North Korean dictator-president Kim Jong-Il pardoned Laura Ling and Euna Lee. This came after an apology by Clinton for their "hostile acts," and probably a host of other negotiations we will never know about. Irrespective of the nitty-gritty, I'm happy for them. A North Korean hard labour prison is probably one of the worst places to be -- period.
I would really like to see a proper interview of these two and their experiences in the Hermit Kingdom.
I am glad they are free. I give Clinton credit for helping them get out of that hard-labour prison.
ReplyDeleteI do think North Korea is an interesting place. I met people who went there and they had interesting things to say about it. I hear Geumgangsan is beautiful, and so is Baekdusan. They say the Arirang Mass Games are a good spectacle. I heard they stopped allowing tourism for now. There's too much going on there these days anyways.
I have wondered what's up there. I have pondered what the villages look like, if there are many visible remnants of the Korean War, etc.
I'd like to see Baekdusan. I was actually hoping to go there this summer, but things didn't work out.
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