Demonstrations across the U.S. are to call for the release of two American journalists who face trial on spying charges in North Korea. Euna Lee, a Korean-American, and Laura Ling, a Chinese-American, were seized by North Korean soldiers in March while working on a story about North Korean refugees along the Chinese border. Their families and acquaintances plan a candlelight vigil on Tuesday in front of the headquarters of Current TV, where the two were working, in San Francisco.
Lisa Ling, Laura Ling's sister and herself a TV personality, told reporters, "This has been an incredibly difficult time for us. Please understand that due to the extreme sensitivity of the case, it is vital for our families to stay quiet. Please know however, that when you are out there holding those candles, that we are there with you with fires lit in our hearts."
A regular event dubbed North Korea Freedom Week in Washington, D.C. will also call for their release. Participants will seek to draw international attention the reporters' detention in a rally near the Capitol Building on Tuesday and at a press conference Wednesday by an organization called the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea.
International journalists' group Reporters Sans Frontieres (Reporters Without Borders) will deliver a petition to North Korea's permanent mission to the UN this week. RSF condemned North Korea's treatment of the two as criminals.
RSF's Asian director Vincent Brossel told Radio Free Asia it was clear the two did not commit any crimes that would warrant being put on trial in North Korea. He added it was doubtful whether they would get a fair trial there.
