Admin l Wednesday, March 15, 2017
WASHINGTON, United States – The United States of America has described the 15 years sentence on its citizen, Otto Warmbier by the Peoples Democratic Republic of Korea, (DPRK) as unjust and unduly harsh for the offence he allegedly committed.
Otto Warmbier was convicted and sentenced to 15 years imprisonment and hard labour for hostile acts against DPRK. He was arrested January 2, 2016 for theft of a political propaganda poster.
But speaking at a press conference in Washington, Acting White House Spokesman, Mark C. Toner said the U.S is concerned about his welfare and continued incarceration.
“We believe that he’s being held unjustly. He’s gone through the criminal process and he’s been detained, for as you noted, more than a year. We believe his sentence of 15 years’ hard labor is unduly harsh – harsh, rather – for the actions that Mr. Warmbier allegedly took”, he said.
He urge North Korea to pardon him and grant him special amnesty and immediate release on humanitarian grounds and that the U.S wants access to him – “regular access through our protecting power, which I believe is the Swedish embassy”, he said.
He said the U.S strongly discourages any travel by any U.S. citizens to North Korea given how they are treated, Mr. Warmbier’s case only being the most recent one.
“We urge any U.S. citizen considering travel to North Korea to visit our website, travel.state.gov, and to heed the warning there against traveling to North Korea.
He said the U.S has on several occasion discussed how to get Mr. Warmbier back home.
“Look, the safety and security of American citizens abroad is probably our highest priority at the State Department. I think we’ve shown our track record over the years that we never lose sight of individuals like Mr. Warmbier we believe, held unjustly by governments or entities overseas. We’re going to continue to press for his amnesty, and we’re going to keep his case at the forefront”, he said.
