Following 22-year-old University of Virginia student Otto Warmbier’s release from North Korean detainment, his father stated on Thursday that he did not believe North Korea’s explanation for why Warmbier is in a coma.
“We don’t believe anything that they [North Korea] say,” said Fred Warmbier at a news conference at Wyoming High School in Wyoming, Ohio, wearing the tan jacket his son wore during his televised confession in North Korea. “I don’t think we’ll ever find the answer. North Korea doesn’t do anything out of the kindness of their heart.”
Warmbier’s father credited the Trump administration for his son’s release, calling the president “kind.”
“It was nice,” referring to the phone call he received from Trump. “And it was gracious, and it felt good.”
Conversely, he criticized the Obama administration’s advice to the Warmbier family “to keep a low profile,” for fear of offending North Korea and causing further turmoil.
When asked if the Obama administration could have done to rescue Warmbier, he said, “I think the results speak for themselves.”
Nonetheless, Warmbier stated that he was “proud of Otto, the courage he showed by going to North Korea, [and] having that adventurous side to him. Otto is a sweet, loving, kind person, and that’s what we loved about him.”
“The fact that he was taken and treated this way is horrible,” continued Warmbier’s father, “and its tough to process.”
Warmbier’s mother, Cindy, was supposed to attend the news conference as well; however, she decided to stay at the hospital with her son.
“She knows that Otto is a fighter, and she and I firmly believe that he fought to stay alive through the worst the North Koreans could put him through,” stated Fred Warmbier.
This interview further added to the mystery surrounding Warmbier’s case. Part of a tour group, Warmbier’s arrived in North Korea in December 2015. On January 2, 2016, he was arrested while he was leaving the country. Officials accused him of “anti-republic activities” for stealing a propaganda sign from his hotel.
In a televised, heart-wrenching, painfully short trial, North Korea found Warmbier to be guilty of his alleged crimes and, despite his pleas for mercy, sentenced him to 15 years of hard labor.
According to North Korea, Warmbier contracted botulism. After taking a sleeping pill, he fell into a coma. The country claimed to have released Warmbier for “humanitarian” reasons.
Upon Warmbier’s return to the U.S., however, doctors at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center found no signs of Warmbier contracting botulism. Instead, they discovered that he had suffered a “severe neurological injury” and “extensive loss of brain tissue in all regions of the brain.”
The student was in a condition described as “unresponsive wakefulness,” allowing him to open his eyes and blink spontaneously, but he showed “no signs of understanding language.”
The hospital could not figure out exactly how Warmbier received these injuries. “This pattern of brain injury, however, is usually seen as a result of cardiopulmonary arrest, where the blood supply to the brain is inadequate for a period of time, resulting in the death of brain tissue,” it stated.
As doctors continue to treat Warmbier, his case has raised questions about American policy toward North Korea. At least three other U.S. citizens are in North Korean custody. Pyongyang has also tested multiple missiles and nuclear devices this year, violating international law and threatening its neighbors, as well as the U.S.
While the Obama administration aimed to use “strategic patience” with the Asian country, the Trump administration publicly turned away from this strategy.
The “time for strategic patience is over. We’ve been brutalized [by North Korea] for the last 18 months with misinformation, no information,” said Fred Warmbier. The family had mostly remained silent about Warmbier’s detainment because of the “false premise” that North Korea “would treat Otto well.”
Nonetheless, Warmbier’s father was simply glad that his son was home with his family. “I can share my spirit with his spirit, and I’m just so happy for that,” he added.
