North Korea makes mobile phone users 'war criminals'

DEAR LEADER Kim Jong-il might have departed only a month ago but his favoured son seems to be following in his madcap footsteps by warning citizens that using a mobile phone will make them 'war criminals'.

According to The Telegraph, North Korea is trying to stop those of its citizens wanting to defect to China by issuing a stern warning. The ruling Workers' Party has said that any use of mobile phones during the 100-day mourning period will get the user branded as a war criminal.

In 2008 North Korea started to build its own 3G network in a deal with Egyptian firm Orascom. The infamous 105-floor Ryugyong Hotel in North Korea's capital Pyongyang, affectionately known as the Hotel of Doom, had telecoms antennas installed, but with the reportedly widespread poverty, mobile phones remain a luxury well out of the reach of most North Koreans.

As usual sketchy reports coming out of North Korea suggest that food supplies are low and it is widely believed that Kim Jong-un needs to assert his authority to shore up his power. The Telegraph claims that 23,000 North Koreans have defected to South Korea.

Now we would understand Kim Jong-un cracking down on people using Windows Phone handsets but perhaps branding them as war criminals is a bit over the top. µ