Headline meets the obvious
Written by: Beck
Life in North Korea harsh for U.S. deserters.
Shocking, isn't it?
Far from finding a communist paradise, four U.S. soldiers suspected of deserting to North Korea in the 1960s were forced to live together in a tiny house under constant surveillance, to scrounge for food and to study the works of "the Great Leader," Kim Il Sung, for up to 16 hours a day.
[...] Shedding new light on a bizarre Cold War tale, former U.S. Army Sgt. Charles R. Jenkins said at his court-martial this week that he and the others lived for years as a tightly knit--if not always harmonious--group honed by hardship, poverty and frequent beatings.
Jenkens deserted because he was afraid of being killed while patrolling the DMZ and of being sent to Vietnam. Once he became a guest of the People's Republic of Korea, he wished for death. Funny how things work out, ain't it?