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American citizen to face verdict in North Korea court
A U.S. citizen is facing trial in North Korea for coup charges after entering the country legally as a tourist last year. The tourist, Pae Jun Ho, entered North Korea on November 3.
Pae, who is known in the United States as Kenneth Bae, was detained soon after he arrived on charges that he attempted to overthrow the North’s government. KCNA, the official news agency for North Korea, added that Pae apparently admitted the charges.
KCNA stated in a report on Saturday, “The preliminary inquiry into crimes committed by American citizen Pae Jun-Ho closed. In the process of investigation he admitted that he committed crimes aimed to topple the DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea] with hostility toward it.”
The report added that “his crimes were proved by evidence.” It is believed that the U.S. citizen is a tour operator of Korean descent. He was reportedly arrested after he arrived in Rason, an economic zone in the country’s north-east near the Russian border.
The agency added, “He will soon be taken to the Supreme Court of the DPRK to face judgment.” So far, Washington, D.C., has not publicly commented on the latest development in the U.S. citizen’s arrest. The United States and North Korea do not have diplomatic relations.
However, the Swedish embassy in Pyongyang looks after U.S. interests in the country. The embassy sent people to visit Pae recently. It is not known what Pae’s exact charges are, or how long he could face in jail if convicted. The Inquisitr
HIGHLIGHTS
The case further complicates already fraught relations between Pyongyang and Washington following weeks of heightened rhetoric and tensions. Newser
Diplomats from China, South Korea, the U.S., Japan and Russia have been conferring in recent weeks to try to bring down the rhetoric and find a way to rein in Pyongyang before a miscalculation in the region sparks real warfare. AP
Robert King, the U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights issues, said the North has not made any request for an envoy to negotiate Mr Bae's release. Telegraph
The U.S. had no immediate comment on the KCNA report, Beth Gosselin, a spokeswoman at the State Department in Washington, said by phone. A delegation that included former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson failed during its visit to North Korea in January to secure Pae’s release. Bloomberg Businessweek
Several U.S. citizens have been detained in recent years in North Korea. All of them have been released after negotiations. Eddie Jun, a Korean-American missionary, was released in 2011 after being detained for half a year for proselytizing, according to the Associated Press. In February 2010, North Korea released an American missionary, Robert Park, after he was held for about two months. Bloomberg Businessweek
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Originally Posted by tto827
