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| China-Japan-Koreas |
| Four Decades in North Korea |
| 2004-09-10 |
| Intro only. Pretty pathetic actually. Via Winds of Change One cold night in 1965, Sgt. Charles Robert Jenkins disappeared from a patrol in South Korea. Forty years later he has resurfaced. In his first interview since leaving North Korea, he tells the [Far Eastern Economic] REVIEW his story AFTER SURVIVING FOR nearly four decades in North Korea and spending a month in a Tokyo hospital room, United States Army Sgt. Charles Robert Jenkins wants closure. And to get it, he's ready to tell his story. In Jenkins' first interview since taking flight from the North Korean regime in July, the alleged defector tells the REVIEW why he intends to turn himself over to the U.S. Army even though he expects to face a court martial. Jenkins reveals that he sought asylum at the Soviet embassy in Pyongyang in 1966, endured repeated beatings at the hands of another alleged American defector, and was pressured by North Korean authorities to reject a personal invitation by the Japanese prime minister to leave the country with him. And he describes how his difficult life in North Korea was lifted from misery by a love affair with a Japanese nurse who shared his hatred of the communist regime and eventually helped him and their two daughters escape. |
| Posted by:Mrs. Davis |
| #4 Can't say that I disagree with the comments above, but I think having what he knows is worth some quid pro quo. We have dealt with some very unsavory characters and handed them big bucks for a lot less than what this guy can give. Some of it may be only background, but what if one of the "American looking" guys turned up in a sensitive position. I would rather swallow the bad taste in my mouth if I could have what info he's got. |
| Posted by: Old Fogey 2004-09-10 7:52:17 PM |
| #3 Ban this traitor from the US. Why waste any public funds on him by slapping him in prison. Maybe he can live his golden years in France or some place like that. He lost his country when he turned away from her that day in 1965. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2004-09-10 12:04:09 PM |
| #2 I'm sorry, are we supposed to feel sorry for this guy? The same guy who deserted and sought refuge in the most severe communist nation left? For 40 years? I do have some interest in his freak story, but only as an oddity. Actually, calling him a freak is an insult to those old sideshows. |
| Posted by: nada 2004-09-10 11:44:15 AM |
| #1 And he describes how his difficult life in North Korea was lifted from misery by a love affair with a Japanese nurse who shared his hatred of the communist regime and eventually helped him and their two daughters escape. Can't wait until this is on Lifetime. Oprah will probably produce it. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2004-09-10 11:26:16 AM |