As many of you have probably heard by now, on June 8th Euna Lee and Laura Ling, two American journalists for Current TV, were sentenced to twelve years in a labor camp in North Korea. They have been found guilty of trespassing into the North Korean border, which has not been completely proven to be true.
There are theories that the journalists were purposely abducted so that Kim Jong-Il would have a bargaining chip when it came to negotiations with the US government concerning nuclear testing and weapons or that it could have been revenge for the expose Lisa Ling, Laura Ling’s sister, did on North Korea three years ago.
North Korea has always been obscured in mystery. There have been horrific stories about the conditions in their labor camps from those who have escaped and managed to defect to other countries. The country suffers from extreme dictatorship and censorship. After Euna Lee and Laura Ling’s conviction, there was a fair amount of news coverage on them, but it has waned recently. This should not be the case. The more focus the public gives to this situation, the more proactive the US government will become.
-Sylvie
Photo courtesy of New York Times.
