http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/27/north-korea-makes-using-a-cellphone-a-war-crime-during-100-day-m/
More evidence of something peculiar happening in the hermit kingdom.
In 2008, Korea’s Dear Leader blessed his subjects with the gift of 3G. Now iPhones are showing up in the hands of North Korean military even though cellphones have been banned as part of the country’s 100 days of mourning for Kim Jongt-Il.
If you’re caught pulling out a portable to make a call, send a text or get directions to the nearest statue of the departed dictator you’ll be charged as a war criminal — that means serious time in a labor camp or death. Fun!
The Telegraph warns that nothing can be taken at face value in a nation where the average income is about $1 a month and cellphone ownership is available only to privileged, party officials. Moreover, as the Ave has reported, there have been “leaks” suggesting that Kim Jung Un, the new democratically chosen successor, may be interested in expanding ties with the equally secretive Apple regime from Cupertino.
For its part, given its problems with Foxcom, why shouldn’t Cupertino consider moving jobs to a place where labor is better controlled? People who are caught attempting to flee DPRK poverty and political oppression usually end up in the North’s network of hard labour camps. China, for its part has been, forces illegal immigrants to return to North Korea where they are sent to the same work camps.
Apple would spin the North Korean move as an act of kindness.