Cell Phone Use In North Korea Is A War Crime

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It’s not every day that we get technology news out of North Korea–considering that most of the population lives on about $1 US every day and cell phones are a luxury preserved for the very few, it’s not surprising that they’re not exactly a technological bellwether–but if you thought the 2010 ban on DSLR cameras in Kuwait was weird, wait until you try to use a cell phone in North Korea for the next three months. That is, if you survive the experience….

News aficionados out there might already know that North Korea recently lost its head man, Kim Jong Il. And as such, the country has entered a period of mourning as directed by the state. But what you may not know is that part of that mourning period is the complete banning of cell phone usage throughout the country. Anyone caught using a cell phone can be subsequently convicted as a war criminal (no, seriously, a war criminal), which in turn can result in penalties starting at “labor camp” and ending at “death”.

Considering that only about five percent of the country even owns any kind of phone, (their “world-class 3G network” has a whopping 700,000 users, or roughly three percent of the entire country) one would wonder why they’re even bothering with such a ban–it would be almost like the United States declaring anyone that owns a moon rock to be a traitor–and some have advanced the notion that they simply don’t want those folks with cell phones making calls about how people can get out of North Korea and instead wind up in China getting out. Some have instead advanced the notion that this just adds one more brick in the already expansive wall of North Korea’s truly epic stockpiles of crazy.

So what do we make of this? Well, if you’ve got a cell phone in North Korea, there’s a chance you might actually be reading this. So it’d probably be for the best to leave them on the charger for the next couple months, or failing that, just take the battery out altogether.

And what do you guys think about this one? A deliberate control of the flow of information? Or one more nutty enterprise from the people who brought you the Meeting Hall for Separated Families? No matter what you think about this one, head on down to the comments section below and tell us all about it!