海角大神

A typical foreigner visiting聽North Korea聽generally assumes he or she is out of the hands of guides, known as 鈥渕inders,鈥� after boarding the Air Koryo flight back to聽Beijing.聽

In the case of 85-year-old Merrill Newman of聽Palo Alto,聽California, the getaway from聽Pyongyang聽was not all that simple. His son, Jeffrey, says he鈥檚 been held for four weeks 鈥� ever since a North Korean officer ordered him off the plane on Oct. 26 after he鈥檇 already gone through customs and was about to take off.

Glyn Davies, US envoy to North Korea, today urged officials in Pyongyang to, "resolve the issue, and to allow our citizens to go free."聽

What could have happened that would cause the North Koreans to hold Mr. Newman?

Yes, as a passenger traveling with him recalled, he may have argued with his minders about the Korean War, when he served in the US Army.

North Korea聽to this day calls the war a huge 鈥渧ictory鈥� for the northern side against the聽US,聽South Korea,聽and their UN allies. The North often refers to the signing of the armistice at聽Panmunjom聽in July, 1953 a 鈥渟urrender.鈥�

Surely, though, if the North Koreans had wanted to get Newman for that disagreement, they would have done so well before he boarded the plane.

North Korea has regularly detained or arrested foreigners. Sometimes the reason relates to underground missionary activity. Some detentions appear to be undertaken to remind citizens of the North why the nation adopts a war or "military first" posture regarding the outside world, or they may be used as a "card" in ongoing negotiations.聽

A year ago this month the regime detained an American citizen, Kenneth Bae, born in South Korea, who was acting as a leader for a tour group out of China that was allegedly an underground 海角大神 missionary operation. Mr. Bae was arrested and sentenced to serve 15 years in a North Korea prison camp on charges of subversion.聽

A couple of theories derive from my nine visits to North Korea, including seven in which I entered and left via Pyongyang, most recently in July of last year.

Although there is nothing to suggest that these theories explain Newman鈥檚 detention, visitors often consider keeping for themselves a souvenir or two from their rooms. Anything with an emblem of the DPRK (Democratic People鈥檚聽Republic聽of聽Korea) or聽Panmunjom, any propaganda picture, poses a temptation.

Minders generally warn against such petty thievery in the name of souvenir-hunting. They warn there have been instances in which foreigners have had to pay hefty fines for taking stuff. Most visitors don鈥檛 take the chance 鈥� though it鈥檚 not unknown to leave undetected with a pilfered towel.

Another temptation, especially for one with strong views critical of聽North Korea, is to leave a note denouncing the North. Scrawling an obscenity in soap across a bathroom mirror is an idea that has occurred to more than one visitor.

Better yet, how about if he left a letter on the bed that is critical of the regime?

Few visitors actually do yield to the temptation to fulfill such a fantasy. In visits to聽North Korea, this writer has joked with fellow travelers about doing just that. I even speculated in one conversation on whether they鈥檇 drag me off the plane as soon as they found out 鈥� or even order the plane, in flight, to turn around and deposit me at the airport.

In fact, I recall answering my own extremely hypothetical question: 鈥淚 bet they would.鈥澛�