The two American journalists jailed in North Korea were convicted Monday and sentenced each to 12 years in labor camps for a "grave crime" against the nation and illegally crossing into the communist country from China, according to the Associated Press.
Euna Lee and Laura Ling were reporting on the trafficking of women along the Tumen River, a porous border between the two countries, when they were arrested March 17. They have been jailed separately, and were tried in the highest North Korean court starting Thursday. Beyond a statement saying the trial had begun, the North Korean news agency did not release any information until the announcement that the pair had been convicted. The trial was not open to foreign observers.
The families of the journalists, who work for San Francisco-based Current TV, had mainly left the sensitive negotiations up to the State Department, but went public on international and national television in the days leading up to the trial.
Ling's sister, television personality Lisa Ling, apologized on behalf of the journalists for any mistakes that might have made and asked the North Korean government to treat the case as a humanitarian issue.
The family did not have a statement Sunday evening, said Jerry Wang, Ling's uncle.
Marcus Marquez, who attended Del Campo High School with Ling and helped organize a local vigil for the journalists, remains optimistic that a conviction and sentence is part of the process of release.
"Early on it was said that they needed to be sentenced before the negotiation to set them free," Marquez said. "So hopefully this is the next step to getting them home."
The news was devastating for Pat Laskey, who taught Ling at Del Campo, attended her wedding, and remains a family friend.
"I believe they're going to come out of there, but nonetheless, I can't even imagine what they're going through," Laskey said. "I've got tears in my eyes. I knew they were going to be convicted, but even then, the reality of it is still something that's stunning."
The sentencing comes at an increasingly tense time between the reclusive country and the United States, which is lobbying for U.N. sanctions for recent nuclear activity. It remains unclear whether the journalists did actually cross into North Korea or if they were captured as a tactic to pressure Washington into bargaining directly with Pyongyang.
About Comments
Reader comments on Sacbee.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Sacramento Bee. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "report abuse" button below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.