Euna Lee (
Korean: 유나 리; born 1972) is a Korean American journalist.[2]
While working for
Current TV, Lee and fellow journalist
Laura Ling were
detained in North Korea after they crossed into the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea from the People's Republic of China without a visa in March 2009. They were found guilty of illegal entry and sentenced to twelve years'
hard labor in June 2009.[3][4] The United States Government protested the sentences, and implemented diplomatic efforts in order to secure the release of both Lee and Ling.[5] On August 4, 2009, Lee and Ling were pardoned by the
North Korean government after a special humanitarian visit by former U.S. President
Bill Clinton. She wrote a book on her experiences in North Korea titled The World Is Bigger Now: An American Journalist's Release from Captivity in North Korea ... A Remarkable Story of Faith, Family, and Forgiveness.[6]
On August 4, 2009,
Bill Clinton visited North Korea in an attempt to free Lee and fellow journalist Laura Ling. The
North Korean government pardoned both Lee and Ling after meeting with Clinton that day.[10][11] It was also said that the equipment and materials they used for their interviews were left behind in North Korea, and that information about defectors and human rights activists who helped them in their interviews was obtained by the North Korean authorities, putting them in danger.[12] Human rights activists in South Korea accused Lee and Ling of placing North Korean refugees in danger through their actions.[13]
^Lee, Euna (2010). The World is Bigger Now: An American Journalist's Release from Captivity in North Korea-- a Remarkable Story of Faith, Family, and Forgiveness. Broadway Books.
ISBN978-0307716132.