hankyoreh

The funeral for student Otto Warmbier

On June 23, the North Korean government released its first official response to the death of Otto Warmbier, an American student detained by the North who returned to the US in a coma and died just six days later.

“There are a lot of groundless rumors in the US about Warmbier dying because he was tortured and beaten while doing hard labor. We gave him the best treatment until we sent him back to the US for humanitarian reasons considering his deteriorating health,” North Korea’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement by its spokesperson that was released on June 23.

“The American doctors who came to North Korea to take Warmbier home examined him and shared their medical opinions about him with our doctors. After checking his pulse, his temperature, his breathing, and the results of his heart and lung examinations, [the American doctors] agreed that his vital signs were normal, and they acknowledged that we had saved him and treated him when his heart nearly stopped,” the spokesperson said in the statement. “The fact that Warmbier died suddenly not even one week after returning to the US with normal vital signs is a mystery to us as well.”

“The US will have to figure out for itself why the US government (which claims to be so interested in the wellbeing of its citizens) did not even once request that Warmbier be released on humanitarian grounds during the Obama administration. Warmbier was a victim of the policy of strategic patience maintained by Obama, who rejected dialogue because of his extreme hostility and antipathy for us,” the spokesperson said.

“Completely misrepresenting these facts, deliberately provoking criticism and commotion against the DPRK, and clamoring about pressure and retaliation against a state as dignified as ours represent an outright provocation and a political plot against us. Let us be clear: we are the greatest victim of this incident,” the spokesperson claimed.

“The campaign of criticism against the DPRK that is being waged in the US is reinforcing our resolution not to use humanitarianism or generosity toward our enemies and to further sharpen the blade of the law. The US will have to reflect on the consequences of its rash deeds,” the spokesperson went on to say.

Warmbier, a junior at the University of Virginia, was on a trip to North Korea in January 2016 when he was arrested for trying to steal a propaganda poster in the Yanggakdo Hotel in Pyongyang. He was incarcerated that March after being convicted of attempting to overthrow the regime and sentenced to 15 years of hard labor.

After negotiations between North Korea and the US, Warmbier was returned to the US in a coma on June 13, more than 18 months after traveling to North Korea. He was admitted to a hospital upon arrival and passed away six days later. His funeral was held on June 22 at his alma mater of Wyoming High School in Ohio. More than 2,500 people attended his funeral, including family, friends and locals.

By Jung In-hwan, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]