드디어 폼페이오가 북에 억류되어 있었던 한국계 미국인 3명을
대리고 비행기를 타고 오고있다는 소식이다.
워싱턴 엔드류 공군기지에 도착하면 트럼프가 마중을 나가겠다고 한다.

이 소식을 듣고 가슴이 찌잉~~ 함을 느꼈다.
자국민의 보호에 최선을 다하는 미국의 정신 운운 하기 전에
북에 억류되어 있었던 미국인 3명은 전부 미국 시민권을 가지고 있는
한국 사람이라는 사실이다.

여기 열당에서 노닥거리는 시민권 가지고 있는 노인네들과
한치도 차이가 없다.

다시 말하면, 미국은 본토에서 태어난 백인들만 미국사람으로
취급하는것이 아니라, 나이들어 늦게 미국으로 이민 보따리 싸가지고
와서 귀화(Naturaliaztion) 한 타국 사람들도 똑같은 미국인으로
취급하고 있다는것이다.

게다가 트럼프가 마중을 나간다니 감격스럽기 까지 하다.

문재인 같으면 꿈도 꾸지 못할 일이다.

오토 웜비어가 북에서 갖은 고생을 하다가 죽기직전에 풀려나
미국으로 돌아오자 말자 일주일 만에 죽었는데, 지난번 펜스 부통령이
웜비어의 부모를 대동하고 한국을 방문했을때 문재인은
웜비어 부모에게 위로의 말 한마디도 건내지 못하고 찬밥신세로
돌려 보냈다.

인권 변호사 출신인 문재인, 과연 지금 북에 억류되어 있는
수많은 한국인에 대해 그동안 김정은에게 석방 시켜달라고 요구를
한적이 한번이라도 있었든가?

해외에서 고기잡이를 하던 어부가 해적에게 납치되어 고생하다가
풀려 난 사례가 있었는데, 문재인은 그때 '고생했다'는 따뜻한
말한마디라도 했던가?

이번 북에 억류되어 있었던 코리언 어메리컨 3명을 폼페이오가
대리고 온다는 사실, 트럼프가 마중을 나가겠다는 사실은
다분히 보여주기식 포플리즘의 쇼가 아니다.

이거야 말로 휴머니즘의 좋은 실례다.

미국에 살고있는 많은 미국 시민권자 한국인들은 나도 미국사람이라는
긍지를 가질만 하다. 맨날 한국 돌아가는 정치판에 신경만 쓸 일이
아니라 미국소식도 함께 알려고 노력하는 정신이 필요하다.

나는 이번 11월 중간 선거때도 트럼프에게 표를 던질것이다.

----------------------

3 Freed American Detainees on Way Home from North Korea
By: CBS News
Updated: May 09, 2018 10:58 AM CDT


President Trump announced early Wednesday morning on Twitter that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was on his way back to the U.S. from North Korea with three Americans who had been released from prison by the isolated totalitarian state. Mr. Trump had hinted over the past week that the three men would soon be released, but only Tuesday did he announce Pompeo's trip to North Korea -- ostensibly to work out the details of his upcoming summit with Kim Jong Un.

"They seem to be in good health. Also, good meeting with Kim Jong Un. Date & Place set," Mr. Trump added in his tweet.




Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
I am pleased to inform you that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in the air and on his way back from North Korea with the 3 wonderful gentlemen that everyone is looking so forward to meeting. They seem to be in good health. Also, good meeting with Kim Jong Un. Date & Place set.

8:30 AM - May 9, 2018
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36.2K people are talking about this
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Mr. Trump said Pompeo, along with his "guests," would land at Joint Base Andrews, outside Washington, at 2 a.m. on Thursday, and that he would, "be there to greet them. Very exciting!"

The longest-imprisoned of the three, Kim Dong Chul, was sentenced in April 2016 to 10 years hard labor for espionage. The two others -- Kim Hak Song and Tony Kim -- were working at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology when they were detained about a year ago.

The family of prisoner Tony Kim thanked Mr. Trump in a statement released Wednesday morning, saying: "We are very grateful for the release of our husband and father, Tony Kim, and the other two American detainees. We want to thank all of those who have worked toward and contributed to his return home. We also want to thank the President for engaging directly with North Korea. Mostly, we thank God for Tony's safe return."

In a written statement, the White House said Wednesday that, "President Trump appreciates leader Kim Jong Un's action to release these American citizens, and views this as a positive gesture of goodwill. The three Americans appear to be in good condition and were all able to walk on the plane without assistance."

Their release comes as Mr. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un prepare to hold a summit -- possibly within weeks. Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a historic meeting in the Demilitarized Zone on April 27, agreeing to work toward denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and discussing plans to declare a formal end to the Korean War.

Very little is known about why the three men were actually detained by North Korea, or what conditions they faced in custody. Below is a brief summary of what information was made available on the three men.

Kim Dong Chul
Kim, a South Korean-born U.S. citizen, has been held the longest. The former Virginia resident was sentenced in April 2016 to 10 years in prison with hard labor after being convicted of espionage.

He reportedly ran a trade and hotel service company in Rason, a special economic zone on North Korea's border with Russia.

Kim Hak Song
Kim worked in agricultural development at an experimental farm run by the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology. The university is the only privately funded college in North Korea and was founded in 2010 with donations from Christian groups. He was detained last May for alleged anti-state activities.

The North's official Korean Central News Agency announced that Kim was detained and that "a relevant institution is now conducting detailed investigation into his crimes."

He worked at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology.

Tony Kim
Tony Kim, 59, who also uses the name Kim Sang-duk, was detained a year ago at the Pyongyang airport. He had been teaching at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, as had Kim Hak Song.

He was accused of committing unspecified criminal acts intended to overthrow the government. The North has not said whether the two cases of staff at the university are connected.

In April 2017, the chancellor of the university said Kim taught accounting at the university for about a month and previously taught at a university in China. He said he was informed that the detention had "nothing to do" with Kim's work at the university, but he did not know anything further.

North Korea only officially confirmed the detention of Kim in May 2017.

Kim's son, Sol Kim, told CBS News he was stunned by his father's detention. "I asked myself why, what happened, what is the reason, lots of different thoughts went through my head. Will I see him again?" he said. "Part of me really thought he did not do anything wrong, he won't be held very long."

Lead up to release
There were unconfirmed reports that the detainees were moved last week from prisons to a hotel in or near the capital, Pyongyang. But asked on May 3 about their possible release, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders hedged, saying it "would be an incredible sign of goodwill, and certainly a great statement for the North Koreans to make ahead of the summit and the discussions," but that she had no announcement at the time.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Pompeo said he'd be meeting with senior North Korean leaders but didn't know if he'd meet with Kim. "We're prepared to meet with anyone who is speaking on behalf of the North Korean government and can give us solid answers so we're prepared," he said.

"We have been asking for the release of these detainees for this administration for 17 months," he told reporters on Tuesday. "We'll talk about it again today. I think it'd be a great gesture if they would choose to do so."

Pompeo secretly met with Kim in April while he was still director of the CIA. He was confirmed and sworn in as secretary of state on April 26 and quickly departed on his first foreign trip to Europe and the Middle East.

The release of the three Americans comes 11 months after another American detainee, 22-year-old college student Otto Warmbier, was sent home from North Korea in a coma. Warmbier never recovered consciousness and died a week later.

Warmbier was detained in January 2016 while visiting North Korea at the end of a five-day tour. He was later sentenced to 15 years hard labor for allegedly stealing a propaganda banner at his hotel.



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