Not Breaking News but good news anyway......
Back in April I was curiously awaiting the verdict on
Roxana Saberi,
the American reporter who was on Hunger Strike while imprisoned in
an Iranian jail cell. The talented former N. Dakota Beauty Queen had
been held in Tehran since late January, when she was arrested for
buying wine, and later on more serious charges of working as a
journalist without a press card, and spying for the US. It seemed to
me back then that there just wasn't any hope for any U.S. diplomats to
bring about her release, given the increasingly strained relations under
the new Obama administration which had a plate full of post-election
nightmares to deal with. Even Rev. Jesse Jackson's astonishing
track record didn't seem to move the White House to ask for his
intervention. Fortunately, Ms. Saberi was released from that ordeal
when the Iranian courts suspended her eight-year sentence.
Yesterday I learned of the startling news that former U.S. President
Bill Clinton had met with N. Korea's leader Kim Jong-il in
Pyongyang and negotiated the pardon and release of
Euna Lee
and Laura Ling
who were sentenced to 12 years of hard labor in prison. I was simply
jubilant as I looked at the progress of World Humanitarian efforts
with renewed hope. Somehow, Justice had prevailed in Pyongyang.
.
Now, with the reporters back home
there will surely be controversy to follow, as shown by reporter
Jaime Sommers of the Examiner.com who weighs in on the
related issues such as Publicity ops, Mothering, the Female Factor,
and future hostage negotiations under the Obama administration.
My only hope is that reporters everywhere will re-examine their
values and the impact of their actions on their families, their countries
and their own lives. Martyrdom comes at a heavy price.
BBC Article with Slideshow
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8185260.stm
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