Tag Archives: North Korea

World Cup 2010 Kick-Off Marred by ‘Stampede’ Reports

Posted on by
Reply

World Cup 2010 Ceremonies Marred by Stampede ReportsOn Monday, a stampede injured 16 people prior to a World Cup friendly game between Nigeria and North Korea. However, FIFA has cleared out that this incident is in no way related to their organization of the 2010 World Cup. They are still confident that the fixtures will remain peaceful the entire month in South Africa.

Despite their statement, media has still enjoyed publishing this story. The organizers couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable with the situation after they have assured the world that security in South Africa would be in order. Headlines like “Soccer Stampede Mayhem” only aggravated the situation.

A lot of those injured feared for their lives. Princess Mbali said:

When we were coming in, they were just stepping on us. I thought I was dying. I was at the bottom.

Among the 16 injured, only one was severely injured and that man was a police officer. The cause of the stampede was said to be a number of fans who tried to force their way in since they didn’t have tickets.

Lt. Col. Eugene Opperman, the official police spokesman, said that prior to the match, 8000 free tickets had been distributed and those who were not privileged enough to avail of them tried to force their way in before the kick-off.

Police officers did not know who distributed the tickets and FIFA has stated that it did not come from them.

This incident serves as a reminder of the probable setbacks the tournament might experience. Hopefully it will remain as a reminder and not turn out as a preview of things to come.

South Korea Seeks UN Security Council Help

Posted on by
Reply

South Korea Seeks UN Security Council SupportSouth Korea has plans of calling on the UN Security Council to handle the North Korea problems after Pyongyang threatened that war could erupt soon.

South Korea President Lee Myung-Bak is appealing to its allies and the international community to aid in their retaliation and to help force North Korea to stop its nuclear weapons program.

The United States is also monitoring the North after the incident killing 46 sailors happened on March. The 1200 ton Cheonan was concluded to have been sunk by a torpedo launched by North Korea. This finding is that of the multinational probe done by South Korea’s allies.

South Korea has already taken some measures to keep their communist neighbor at bay. One of these is cutting of trade with the North. Seoul is constantly beseeching the Security Council to take action and likewise urging Pyongyang to stop its nuclear plans.

Admiral Robert Willard has said there doesn’t seem to be any unusual movements from north of the border. US forces have been told to be vigilant and be prepared for anything. Although they have warned of an impending war, Pyongyang has yet to make a move. “Everyone in the region is watching North Korea very closely,” said Willard.

North Korea still denies the allegation of the multinational probe and considers it a mere fabrication. They feel that the US and its allies have an ulterior motive in wanting them to be tasked to the Security Council.

President Lee mentioned that if war is inevitable, South Korea and the US will engage them if necessary.

Russia Investigates South Korean Ship Attack

Posted on by
Reply

Russia Investigates South Korean Ship AttackShaken by the deadly sinking of a South Korean warship, Russian experts arrived in Seoul last Monday to shed some light on the issue. They will review the findings of the investigation that is blaming North Korea as the culprit. The incident occurred while South Korean troops were having a practice sortie near the tense border dividing the two.

South Korean is seeking support from the U.N. in the hopes of them acting against the North. If the experts endorse the original findings of the investigation, other major world powers could back the decision to implement sanctions on Pyongyang for the attack. The attack, which killed 46 sailors, happened two months ago.

The South has shared their findings with Wen Jiabao, Premier of the People’s Republic of China, last weekend but China is still holding back from condemning its long time ally.

Jiabao is currently in Japan where he is facing more pressure to take a stand against North Korea. This Monday he met with Yukio Hatoyama, the Japanese Prime Minister, who fully supports South Korea in this incident. He is all for bringing North Korea before the United Nations Security Council where they will be sanctioned or even condemned.

On the other hand, North Korea has vehemently denied the strong allegations against them. They even made mention that the multinational investigation was merely a biased probe being conducted by the South’s allies. The other countries involved in the investigation are America, Australia, Great Britain and Sweden.

Blog Widget by LinkWithin