Originally Posted by
YuropFlyer
Then you should educate yourself..
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/20...orea_trip.html
According to South Korea's National Security Law, sneaking into North Korea without government permission is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, while praising the country could draw seven years.
ie, as a South Korean, you are not allowed (by the South Korean government!) to visit North Korea.. yes, it's the South forbidding it, not the DPRK!
And better don't say anything non-negative about the DPRK when you're in South Korea.. as said, it could land you in prison for up to 7 years..
The North might be a crappy place, but it's not all so sunny in the South either if you say the "wrong" things..
Originally Posted by
YuropFlyer
It's not about her, it's about the law per Se.
For example, in Germany you CAN say that the Nazis did some good things (not my opinion!) without getting jailed. You just can't deny the fact that they killed 6 million jews and other "non desired" people etc.
In South Korea, you simply aren't allowed to praise North Korea..
That's two pair of shoes with quite some different sizes.. Germany has clearly overcome their past, while in South Korea, the paranoia about the North is still (rightful or not..) very high.. again, the DPRK is a SH*T place, but this doesn't make some of the South Korean laws any better..
Actually, I think you need to educate yourself on the law some more. The South Korean National Security Law prohibits praising anti-state propaganda. It doesn't actually state that praising another country is bad. You can say in Korea that the United States is awesome and no one will care. However, because the ROK is still formally at work with the DPRK, they use the NSL to deter people from being communist or in support of the DPRK. It's not used that often but when it is, there seems to be controversy but in a three year span from 2008-2011, it was only used less than 100 times.
The United States also had laws like this at the end of WWII and the beginning of the Cold War. Whenever a country is at war, they seem to go to extreme measures to ensure that the enemy doesn't have an advantage. The U.S. did that with Japanese internment. Not saying this is right or wrong but just stating a fact.
While I'm not a Korean lawyer, it seems that the NSL only pertains to North Korea since South Korea is at war with North Korea.
Originally Posted by
princesakura
DPRK and ROK are still at war. At least 50 ROK soldiers, in addition to several civilians, have been killed by the North since 2000. Very different pairs of shoes. They could still be some wack laws, or not, but everyone comes from a different history that informs the present.
Exactly.
Originally Posted by
cbn42
That is no different from the US stopping its citizens from visiting Cuba.
Has anyone ever been convicted and sentenced under this law, or is it just one of those odd laws on the books?
Back on topic, I think the sentence is reasonable. She assaulted a flight attendant and caused a service disruption for a plane full of people. She is so rich that a fine would mean nothing to her and would not deter this type of behavior in the future.
It's definitely not an odd law but there have been convictions. Amnesty International did a report about this. It stated that between 2008-2011 it was used about 100 times. Given the population of South Korea, it is rarely used.
It's mainly used to prosecute those who are anti-government or very supportive of North Korea but it seems that it is only used when the positions taken by someone is very extreme. Merely being in the opposition party of the current party in power isn't enough.
Yes, to be back on topic, I agree that the sentence is good. She could have been facing a lot more in the U.S.