January 27, 2012 10:15 am EDT

North Korea makes using a cellphone a war crime during 100 day mourning period

Dear Leader may have blessed his subjects with the gift of 3G in 2008, but in his death he is taking it back... at least temporarily. As part of the country's 100 days of mourning, cellphones have been banned within its borders. If you're caught pulling out a portable to make a call, send a text or get directions to the nearest statue of the departed dictator you'll be charged as a war criminal -- that means serious time in a labor camp or death. Fun! Then again, in a nation where the average income is about $1 a month and cellphone ownership is a highly restricted privilege, we can't imagine too many people have anything to worry about. Sadly, this also means there's one less way to get information out of the already hard to crack territory.

North Korea makes using a cellphone a war crime during 100 day mourning period originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jan 2012 05:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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