“During a press conference, Fred Warmbier accused North Korea of luring young Americans into the country via tourist groups that operate out of China.”
The tourist company that took Otto Warmbier into North Korea has announced it will stop taking Americans into the reclusive country. Young Pioneer Tours has previously touted North Korea as “one of the safest places in the world to visit.” The company claimed that prior to the death of Warmbier, they considered North Korea to be an acceptable place for Americans to tour.
In a released statement, the company said, “There had not been any previous detainment in North Korea that has ended in such tragic finality and we have been struggling to process the result.” Does this imply detaining Americans on ridiculous charges is perfectly okay as long as no one dies?
Fred Warmbier, father of Otto Warmbier, spoke out against the North Korean regime for the brutal treatment of his son. The rogue nation kept Otto Warmbier’s condition under wraps for the 17 months he was in a coma. He was sentenced to 15 years of “labor” for the crime of removing a propaganda poster from a wall to keep as a souvenir, according to the regime. Let that sink in for a moment. This harsh of a punishment for such a benign act (if it’s even true) gives the world a glimpse of what this regime is capable of. The human rights violations present in this circumstance are appalling.
During a press conference, Fred Warmbier accused North Korea of luring young Americans into the country via tourist groups that operate out of China. According to Mr. Warmbier, the tourist groups utilize false advertising in their online campaigns to convince Americans that North Korea is a destination location that offers adventure and safety. He claimed these companies offer a false sense of security, promising that Americans never get detained on their tours.
I’m always suspicious of such promises. Oddly enough, these companies also fail to mention the information that can be found on the State Department website, which warns American citizens against any travel to North Korea. Americans who plan to travel abroad should always use this resource before deciding on a destination.
According to the State Department, citizens of the United States in North Korea are, “at serious risk of arrest and long-term detention under North Korea’s system of law enforcement. This system imposes unduly harsh sentences for actions that would not be considered crimes in the United States and threatens US citizen detainees with being treated in accordance with ‘wartime law of the DPRK.’ Since the United States does not maintain diplomatic or consular relations with North Korea, the US government has no means to provide normal consular services to US citizens in North Korea.”
Something tells me these tour companies advertise North Korea as a paradise because they know exactly what information is found through the State Department. I’ve seen a lot of ignorant comments about Otto Warmbier, but people need to realize that he was only 22 years old. There is no doubt he had considerable faith in Young Pioneer Tours to keep him safe.
