Enter the Hermit Kingdom With just a few steps onto the North Korean side of a river, journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee would walk into the perfect political storm, becoming the pawns that both sides would use to weather out the international maelstrom. The memoir, Somewhere Inside coauthored by Laura and Lisa Ling follows the story of one sister's five-month-long detention in the most isolated country on the planet and her sister's heart-wrenching struggle to bring her home. In dramatic fashion that involves all parts of both the United States and North Korean governments, the story traces the story from the brutal arrest of Laura Ling and Euna Lee to her their families fight to bring them home, concluding with the high profile rescue from former President Bill Clinton.
Survival, Sisterhood, and the Little Things that make us all Human
The premise of the book Somewhere Inside, by Laura and Lisa Ling, follows the fast-paced tale of two sisters, separated, not only geographically but also ideologically, into two different worlds. Laura Ling and her co-producer and translator were taken prisoner while filming a documentary that was meant to highlight the fear and hopelessness felt by the North Korea refugees, during which they briefly crossed the unmarked border between China and North Korea. Although actually captured on Chinese territory, the Chinese government would offer no help on securing the journalists return because they had entered China on a tourist visa, instead of a journalistic one.
The journalists were battered and beaten upon arrest and forced to close their eyes and march for hours without stopping. They were interrogated repeatedly before finally being shuttled to detention somewhere inside the North Korean capitol of Pyongyang. Once in the capitol, they were separated and interrogated in individual cells. Laura was then placed under night and day observation and had two live in guards, two women who, although distant at the beginning, became the closest things she had to friends for the first three months of her confinement. It was through these women that Laura explains one of her most important themes, that people to people interaction can cancel out ingrain hatreds, because in this case, she was considered the enemy. Yet as time wore on, she was viewed less as an enemy and more as a human, with the guards giving her candy and attempting to get to know her. In the end, when the first set of guards left her, halfway through her detention, Laura recalls both her sadness and theirs, describing the connection between them as a friendship.
A world and an ideology away, Lisa Ling received the worst news possible. Her sister Laura had been taken prisoner by North Korean border guards and was now somewhere inside the most isolated country on earth. However, the situation was worse than it may initially seem. Lisa had been named as an enemy of the state in North Korea for her National Geographic Documentary where she slipped into North Korea disguised as part of a medical entourage. Lisa knew that this information could harm her sister and she knew that Laura could be punished for her work. Immediately she began to contact her powerful friends throughout the media and political world: including Oprah, Vice President Al Gore, and many others. Gore is the chairman for the Current One Network for which both Laura Ling and Euna Lee worked for and which had sponsored their trip. Immediately the family, through various contacts, even began speaking regularly with heavy weights such as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and even President Barack Obama.
Let me just take a quick break here for one second. Initially when I read that the book was coauthored by both sisters I was kind of angry. I thought that Lisa Ling was just trying to capitalize on her sisters story and I also thought that for most of the story, her view point would be rather useless. But I am glad to admit, and pleasantly surprised, that I was wrong. Lisa's viewpoint offers a unique and essential part of the story, providing the family background and both sister's childhoods. Her part is essential in understanding the choices that Laura makes while incarcerated.
Possibly my favorite moment in the story is when Lisa describes how her mother, Mary Ling, is suffering from anxiety and insomnia due to her daughters situation. She tells how a family friend made her mother some 'enhanced baked goods,' which seemed to offer her some relief. I though this was cleverly witty and also an extremely human moment. It shows that during times of duress and hardship, whats important is the well being of your family and those close to you, not some petty drug law.
Another great aspect of the story is the insight Laura provides into the mindset of the people of North Korea. In North Korea( or the DPRK), Americans are the enemy, and they regard President Bush as an evil hate monger. The North Korea propaganda machine has brainwashed the North Korean collective mind that the world is poor and that the DPRK with its rolling blackouts and famines is the most well off nation on the planet. One character, one of Laura's later guards and translator who she aptly nicknamed Paris (after Paris Hilton), worship both Kim Il-sung and his son Kim Jong-il, or Eternal Leader and Dear Leader respectfully. Paris, a compassionate and well dressed woman, represents the North Korean elite who have 'cellphones and mp3's' while the rest of the country starves. These people are truly devoted to their leader and believe that Americans have an unwarranted hatred for a man who has done them no wrong.
At one point, Paris is packing up to take her weekend break to visit her family but lies about the extent of her stay when Laura asks her because she feels bad and doesn't want to make her sad. In the book this captures the meaning of the little things that make us all human. Paris, her captor, pities Laura, the prisoner, and tries to make her feel better. Even enemies can be friends when they actually have to spend time together. Even a world and ideology away, people are still the same.
Closer Diplomatic Relations
With the high profile visit from President Bill Clinton and his meeting with Kim Jong-il, the idea has been raised that a more direct path of communication with the 'Hermit Kingdom' and its reclusive tyrant. Upon meeting the former President, Kim Jong-il was giddy and excited and exclaimed that her had always wanted to meet Clinton. He said he had felt ingratiated towards him after Bill Clinton was the first world leader to contact him and offer his condolences for the death of his father. This shows again that we are all humans and that on act of kindness can deliver another. Through this meeting, the release of both Laura Ling and Euna Lee was ensured and the international crisis was averted. I hope more people will read this story and learn not to hate on principal and to cherish the little things. The memoir, Somewhere Inside, by Laura and Lisa Ling is a powerful book that highlights a fascinating story and illuminates the similarities between us all, even the bitterest of enemies. The In Review score for this book is 4.5 stars out of 5. The books writing style was excellent and the pace always left one wanting more. The only suggestion would have been to include Euna Lee's story in it as well instead of leaving it for a whole other book.
Later,
Cody
(Photo: Courtesy of Getty Images)
No comments:
Post a Comment