Posted on 04/20/2017 9:11:31 PM PDT by pboyington
University of Virginia student, Otto Warmbier, is a prisoner somewhere in the Orwellian hell hole known as North Korea. Otto Warmbier may be suffering a fate tantamount to an inmate of Dachau. At this very moment, Otto Warmbier may be starving, performing slave labor, being beaten or in fact, he may very well be dead.
The tragic fate of Otto Warmbier, is the tragic fate of the millions of North Koreans living in the Gulag Archipelago of Kim Jong-un’s totalitarian nightmare world.
Warmbier, 23, was convicted of conducting “hostile acts against the DPRK”.
Mr. Warmbier was not an intelligence officer working for the CIA and his ‘hostile act’ was not sabotage or espionage.
The so-called hostile act against North Korea committed by college student Warmbier, (who was travelling with a tour group called Young Pioneer Tours), was purloining a propaganda poster off the wall of the Yanggakdo Hotel in Pyongyang with the inscription, “Let’s arm ourselves strongly with Kim Jong-il’s patriotism!”
Stealing or harming a poster or other items with the name or image of one of North Korea’s past or present lunatic asylum leaders is considered a serious crime against the state.
On January 2, Warmbier was arrested while in the process of departing North Korea from the Pyongyang airport. The other guests in his tour group all left the country without incident. On February 29, 2016, he “confessed” to stealing a piece of North Korean propaganda to take back to the United States as a “trophy” for someone from his home-town church who offered to pay him for it with the gift of a car worth $10,000.
On March 16, 2016, Otto Warmbier was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for committing what Warmbier thought was a harmless college prank that could provide him with a new car.
Warmbier was allowed to speak to the kangaroo court that sentenced him. He stated, obviously under emotional and perhaps physical duress:
“I never, never should have allowed myself to be lured by the United States administration to commit a crime in this country, I wish that the United States administration never manipulate people like myself in the future to commit crimes against foreign countries. I entirely beg you, the people and government of the DPRK, for your forgiveness. Please! I made the worst mistake of my life.”
As tensions with North Korea rise and the war drums beat, the State Department continues to make efforts to one, find out Warmbier’s current location in North Korea, two, meet with him and three, to secure his release with the assistance of the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang.
The State Department released the following statement today:
The welfare and safety of U.S. citizens abroad is one of the highest priorities of the State Department. The Embassy of Sweden continues to request information on the exact location of Mr. Warmbier, and to request access for consular visits with him. However, representatives from the Swedish Embassy have not been granted consular access to Mr. Warmbier since the visit on March 2, 2016. The Department believes Mr. Warmbier’s sentence of 15 years hard labor is unduly harsh for the actions Mr. Warmbier allegedly took. Despite official claims that U.S. citizens arrested in the DPRK are not used for political purposes, it is increasingly clear from its very public treatment of these cases that the DPRK does just that. Mr. Warmbier has gone through the criminal process and has been detained for more than a year. We continue to urge the DPRK to pardon him and grant him special amnesty and immediate release on humanitarian grounds.
The question remains: where is Otto Warmbier? Most distressingly, it is likely Warmbier is being incarcerated in one of North Korea’s penal labor camps for political prisoners known as the Kwalliso.
The internment camps are located in central and northeastern North Korea. They comprise many prison labor colonies in secluded mountain valleys, completely isolated from the outside world. The total number of prisoners is estimated to be 150,000 to 200,000. Yodok camp and Bukchang camp are separated into two sections: One section for political prisoners in lifelong detention, another part similar to re-education camps with prisoners sentenced to long-term imprisonment with the vague hope of eventual release.
The prisoners are forced to perform hard and dangerous slave work with primitive means in mining and agriculture. The food rations are very small, so that the prisoners are constantly on the brink of starvation. In combination with the hard work this leads to huge numbers of prisoners dying. An estimated 40% of prisoners die from malnutrition.
Moreover, many prisoners are crippled from work accidents, frostbite or torture. There is a rigid punishment in the camp. Prisoners who work too slowly or do not obey an order are beaten or tortured. In cases of stealing food or attempting to escape, the prisoners are publicly executed.
As inprisonment in North Korea’s gulag archipelago is life threatening, it is imperative that the State Department continues to lobby for Warmbier’s release, even as tensions continue to rise on the Korean Peninsula.
If you are a religious person, you might want to say a prayer for Otto Warmbier, who at this very moment may be suffering a fate worse than most can imagine.
Of course he was briefed....you cant even apply to go there without an extensive investigation of who you are and all the extensive preliminary documentation etc you have to go through....its not just the tour guides who walk you through the rules.
He certainly knew as does everyone who goes there....but I understand he is one wise guy of the elite mindset..which will always get someone in trouble in a nation with rules.
Oh he’ll come out of this alive....He’s of value to Kim for negotiations because there’s a drive to free him. He’ll have far less treatment then N.Koreans would under the same situation....he’d be dead otherwise.
I worked at a site in Indonesia and was supposed to be given a “rules training” session - but they never got to it for me and a buddy. But dribs and drabs were mentioned. My buddy and I had to go to a building and there were all young, pretty gals around - they all were enamored with my co-worker. Our handler heard me joke about it. “Oh - no girls in your rooms. And no “parties” - which means more than three Indonesian males.”
The one rule he did give and was very strong about was “Stop for their national anthem in the morning and night as they do their flag.” It was similar to what happens on a military base. He told the story of one Australian that didn’t stop his vehicle. A military guard stopped him and motioned him to roll down his window. The Aussie gut a rifle butt to the face. “And then there was the crazy Aussie that thought it would be good fun to climb the pole and steal the flag. After the first shot everybody came running, and the Americans and Aussie’s reasoned with the military guy to not take another shot. He did spent a long time in prison though.”
“Part of me, I know it’s a fantasy, but I’ll say it anyway: Trump says, “Hey Kim, give us back Otto by Noon tomorrow or I’ll nuke your *ss. I know exactly where you are.””
F Otto.
Why should some other 20 year old American kid who is not a college boy but instead joined the Marines have to give his life for that punk Otto to be free?
“Shame on you, troll..”.
Shame on you for using “troll” on someone who says something you disagree with. Who the hell do you think you are? You ain’t Kimchi.
How do I know......because I’ve been following the guys story from the get go.
Good points.
How do I know......because I’ve been following the guys story from the get go.
In the early 1980’s when I was in high school, my dad was working in Cairo and we lived there for around a year.
When we moved there, I knew I could not screw-up while I was there and my dad told me to keep be a not cause any problems. Around a week into our stay, I was at a train station and saw prisoners that they were shipping in box cars. They had the prisoners in cages and their hands and feet were bound.
I caused not problems while I was there, none, none at all.
Otto screwed up and screwed up in a place that does not have liberal criminal penalties.
Chicago south side, etc.
Lol. Good one.
Probably just as dangerous, too.
Perhaps Otto should have realized that he was not protected by the Eight Amendment while in North Korea.
Why doesn’t someone who can get close enough to these murderous despots ever walk up to them and shoot them point blank? I can just imagine it would result in a scene like The Wizard of Oz, when Dorothy killed the witch -— celebration all around. Surely, even his close associates would be thrilled to see Kim jong Un drop dead. I guess none of them have the cojones to sacrifice themselves for the good of their country.
“Why doesn’t someone who can get close enough to these murderous despots ever walk up to them and shoot them point blank? I can just imagine it would result in a scene like The Wizard of Oz, when Dorothy killed the witch...”
Maybe it has something to do with that they have never seen The Wizard of Oz and even if they had seen The Wizard of Oz, they would have the good sense to know that the reality of North Korea does not function in the same manner as the fantasy of The Wizard of Oz.
Apparently you know better than the State Department because they don’t know where he is. Neither do I, and I also have been following the case since the get go.
It is easier to believe that he is safe and sound.
The guy was a complete idiot to attempt this ‘for money’...and since you say you know then you know that was his motive...that and to gain favor with a soriety he wanted to belong to... It's theft and theft in a country he knew if he was caught what the consequences could mean.
....”It is easier to believe that he is safe and sound”..
Has nothing to do with believing....it does have to do with understanding how Kim operates ....and this guy is a perfect tool in hand to negotiate with. And you don’t damage those tools.
I won’t be saying bad things about what you said. It’s a shame & horrific that NORK exists the way it does & treats people the way it does, but those are the FACTS on the ground for anyone who visits, including Otto.
“The other guests in his tour group all left the country without incident.” Otto could have been part of this group - that he was not is self-inflicted.
This man’s situation is entirely of his own making.
He made several very bad decisions.
My point: there at were at least 250 journalists from the world’s MSM in NK last week to report on Kim’s anniversary parade. Did any one of them take the opportunity to ask about Mr Warmbier?
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