On July 18th Travis King, a US soldier on a private tour, snuck away from his group and defected to North Korea. The UN Command at the border between North and South Korea confirmed reports that he left of his own free will.
North Korean officials have not publicly confirmed Private 2nd Class (PV2) King was in their care, but have responded to UN calls all but confirming he is there. The soldier was stationed in South Korea as part of his rotation and was scheduled to return to the US for a disciplinary hearing over assault charges.
Instead of heading back to the States, the soldier dashed to the ‘hermit kingdom’ for reasons unknown, though many believe he wanted to avoid military court. The autocratic kingdom has very little contact with the outside world, yet in recent years, a number of American citizens who illegally entered North Korea – excluding those convicted of criminal activity there – have been released within six months.
Who Goes to North Korea?
There is actually a long history of foreigners entering North Korea legally and illegally. The several people who have done so for different reasons: adventure, evangelicalism, tourism etc.
In 1965 Army Sergeant Charles Jenkins fled to North Korea while serving in the South. As one of the few defectors during the Cold War era, Jenkins was used in leaflets and posters by North Korean authorities to validate their country. In 2004, Jenkins was allowed to leave North Korea and rejoin his wife in Japan, where he surrendered to U.S. military authorities and faced charges that he abandoned his unit and defected to North Korea.
Another case is of Otto Warmbier, a 22-year-old University of Virginia student who died in June 2017, after 17 months in North Korean captivity. He died shortly after returning to the US. Warmbier was seized by North Korean authorities from a tour group in January 2016 and convicted on charges of trying to steal a propaganda poster and sentenced to 15 years of hard labour.
The Hermit Kingdom
The most famous case is of renowned basketball player Dennis Rodman, who had been invited by Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un. Kim, a hardcore basketball fan loves the Chicago Bulls and has spent years building his friendship with Rodman, the big man for Michael Jordans’ Bulls in the nineties. Rodman has even petitioned for the release of other Americans, using his friendship as a political tool.
While we have no word on the condition of Travis King, North Korea has been shown to be hospitable to Americans when it favours them, especially in the public relations field. Only time will tell whether he will make it home, or stay inside the fortress of the world’s last ‘black box’ nation.