US warns Americans against travel to North Korea

The State Department has urged
Americans to avoid all travel to North
Korea, warning that US citizens making
the trip risk long and “unduly harsh”
imprisonment if they fall foul of laws in
the hermit state.
At least 14 US citizens have been
detained by Pyongyang over the past
decade, according to Washington.
“The State Department strongly urges
US citizens to avoid all travel to North
Korea due to the serious risk of arrest
and long-term detention under North
Korea’s system of law enforcement,
which imposes unduly harsh sentences,
including for actions that in the United
States would not be considered crimes,”
according to a statement Monday.
In one recent well-publicized case, 21-
year old American student Otto
Warmbier was arrested in January for
allegedly stealing a propaganda sign
from a tourist hotel in Pyongyang. He
was sentenced in March to 15 years’
hard labor.
Last month North Korea sentenced a
detained Korean-American, Kim Dong-
Chul, to 10 years’ hard labor on charges
of subversion and espionage, China’s
official Xinhua news agency said.
“North Korea has detained those who
traveled independently and those who
were part of organized tours. Being a
member of a group tour or using a tour
guide will not prevent North Korean
authorities from detaining or arresting
you,” the statement cautioned.
“Efforts by private tour operators to
prevent or resolve past detentions of US
citizens in the DPRK have not been
successful.”
The State Department went on to say
that Americans traveling to North
Korea, against the advice of the State
Department, “should have no
expectation of privacy”.
“All electronic and multimedia devices
including USB drives, CDs, DVDs,
mobile phones, tablets, laptops,
Internet browsing histories and cookies
are subject to search for banned
content,” read the statement, which
added a long list of actions seen as
harmless in the US but which could be
deemed serious offenses in North
Korea.
“Possession of any media, either
physical or electronic, criticizing the
DPRK government or its leaders is
considered a criminal act punishable by
long-term detention in hard labor
camps and heavy fines.”
Other activities that could be “treated
as crimes” include “showing disrespect”
to the country’s past or current leaders,
“entering North Korea without proper
travel documentation,” and
“proselytizing or carrying out religious
activities.”
In addition to imprisonment for
activities which might be treated as
criminal, “numerous foreigners have
been held in North Korea for extended
periods of time without being formally
charged with any crimes,” the State
Department said.