By This has long been suspected and now it is official, the actions of Laura Ling, Mitch Koss, and Euna Lee crossing into North Korea has led to the capture and deportation of North Korean refugees and human rights activists within China:
Video footage shot by two TV journalists who were detained in North Korea after filming on the Chinese border was used by China to round up on North Korean refugees. China also deported one South Korean human rights activist who is seen in the footage and closed five orphanages that had protected North Korean children.
The two reporters were sentenced to 12 years hard labor but freed after a visit to North Korea by former U.S. president Bill Clinton on Aug. 5.
Chinese police also confiscated related materials including list of activists working for North Korean refugees in China, data on North Korean orphans, and video footage showing North Korean women who were sold into the Chinese countryside or appeared in porn videos.
The claims were made Thursday by Lee Chan-woo (71), a pastor with the Durihana Mission, a South Korean organization that aids North Korean defectors. Lee was caught and deported by Chinese police for helping the two reporters, who worked for former U.S. vice president Al Gore’s Internet news channel Current TV. [Chosun Ilbo]
Read the rest of the article but it provides many more details on what the confiscation of the reporters’ tape by Chinese authorities led to which is mainly the deportation of human rights activists and the capture of North Korean refugees.
For those wondering about the women appearing in porn, many North Korean refugees work in the sex industry in China in order to raise enough money to pay smugglers to take them to a third country, usually Thailand where they can apply for refugee status to South Korea. Other North Korean women become sex slaves of Chinese farmers and officials. Because of the sex industry in China roughly 80% of North Korean refugees are women.
Because of the irresponsibility of these reporters Laura Ling, Mitch Koss, and Euna Lee these women who already face a tough existence in China will probably keeping with Chinese policy be sent back to North Korea where they will face execution or if they are lucky they will just end up like this woman.
So does anyone think this part of the story will ever make it into Laura Ling’s book she stands to make a million dollars from?
Both Sonagi at the Marmot’s Hole and One Free Korea have postings up on this story as well that you all should check out.
12:01 pm on August 21st, 2009 1
I certainly hope the MSM picks up on this. It is very important for people to know the damage these woman did to other peoples lives in their quest for a photo op. Disgusting lame brained journalists looking for a story.
2:33 pm on August 21st, 2009 2
But Gerry,
THEY ARE HEROES!
The Goracle has spoken from his mansion, back into your mud cave peon.
3:41 pm on August 21st, 2009 3
They are responsible for each and every one of the lives they put in jeapordy. The Goracle is as much to blame for having sent or sponsored such incompetant people on such a perilous journey. Yes politics and the MSM will play a large part in defusing any culpability of the "poor mistaken girls who were captured and sent to jail for no reason", but the truth is that they may be complicit in the unwarrented arrest and murder of innocent refugees due to their negligence.
3:47 pm on August 21st, 2009 4
The New York Times has caught wind of this story.
In South Korea, Freed U.S. Journalists Come Under Harsh Criticism
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/22/world/asia/22jo…
It includes the first quote I've seen from Mitch Koss since St Patrick's Day:
'The cameraman, Mr. Koss, declined to answer specific questions about the trip until Ms. Ling and Ms. Lee had spoken first. Still, he said, he was amazed by “how many untrue stories have been published in the last five months” and how “when there is silence, fantasy answers to fill in empty spaces.”'
4:05 pm on August 21st, 2009 5
I'm upset, I want it front page news.
12:11 am on August 22nd, 2009 6
Over at One Free Korea he has an update that he received word that Laura Ling and Euna Lee are "anguished" by this report and critical blog postings:
http://www.freekorea.us/2009/08/20/the-blood-of-c…
Like OFK says what do they expect when none of them will come clean on what happened? Also when you stand to make millions off of getting NK refugees arrested and deported why wouldn't people be critical of you?
Now if they used the money to raise to actually help NK refugees that would be a different story, but so far there has been no indication they plan to do that.