The Sorbate: Thoughts On North Korea's Release Of Laura Ling & Euna Lee

The news, as we all know, is notorious for being doom and gloom most days. But for once, on August 5^th 2009, we got a chance to see something truly heartwarming. Laura Ling and Euna Lee were pardoned from their sentence of 12 years hard labor in North Korea. The two young women were reunited with their families and the joy and relief was undeniable. Seeing Euna Lee embracing her daughter after their many months apart could melt anyone’s heart, except of course Fox “News”.

So I have some friends who are moving to Korea to teach English through Teach for America. Sadly, the first thing that came to mind when they told me about their move was, “How close are you to China-North Korea??” I was immediately reminded of the capture of Laura Ling and Euna Ling for their illegal crossing of China’s borders. It’s still unclear whether or not they strayed into North Korea or were captured by forceful border guards; however, recent statements suggest that they purposefully crossed into the country to report about the country’s trafficking of women (Lee, 2009). (The two women were pardoned this Tuesday as Bill Clinton, himself, arrived unannounced in North Korea and apologized on the women’s behalf to North Korean’s leader Kim Jong II.)