U.S. citizen to be indicted in North Korea for crimes against the nation

[News_Editor]

U.S. citizen to be indicted in North Korea for crimes against the nation

2011-04-15 03:05:56 GMT+7 (ICT)

PYONYANG, NORTH KOREA (BNO NEWS) -- North Korea on Thursday informed that a U.S. citizen, who has been in custody since November, will be indicted on crimes against the nation.

According to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Jun Young-su was arrested in November 2010 in North Korea for committing unnamed crimes. He is a missionary in his sixties and entered the Asian country under a business visa.

North Korean authorities have been investigating Young-su since he entered the country and has reportedly admitted his crime in the course of the investigation but no further details of the alleged offense have been disclosed.

"The relevant organ is making arrangements to indict him according to the confirmation of the charges brought against him," North Korean authorities said.

On Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner urged North Korea to release the American citizen on humanitarian grounds and treat him according to international human rights law.

However, Toner admitted that the U.S. does not have any details of the alleged crime. North Korea provided the U.S. consular access to the detainee through the Swedish embassy in Pyongyang.

The U.S. and North Korea do not have diplomatic relations and the Swedish embassy serves as a protecting power for the U.S. in the Asian country. It is believed that the American citizen was detained over unauthorized religious activities as many U.S. churches have engaged in missionary visits in North Korea.

The U.S. State Department has expressed concern about ongoing human rights violations in North Korea in the past. In March, the department called North Korea's human rights situation "deplorable" under the dictatorship of Kim Jong-il.

On the other hand, North Korea condemned the U.S. anti-terror operations worldwide which the Asian country considers them to be aimed to put major areas rich in natural resources and strategic strongholds under its military domination.

In August 2010, U.S. President Obama issued an Executive Order that froze the assets of certain individuals, companies and organizations related to North Korea's nuclear program.

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