Ashton: Sentencing Of U.S. Journalists In North Korea A ‘National Crisis’

Count Ashton Kutcher among those who are outraged over two American journalists being sentenced to 12 years of hard labor in North Korea on Monday.

After news broke that Laura Ling and Euna Lee, reporters for former Vice President Al Gore’s San Francisco-based Current TV media venture, were found guilty of committing a “grave crime” against North Korea and illegally entering the country, Ashton took to his Twitter page to rally support for the women.

“This should be a national crisis… We have to demand that something be done. This is our country, it’s our military,” he Tweeted. “I say it’s special ops time… If we can save that Captain from pirates we can save these journalist [sic].”

North Korean guards arrested Ling (the sister of TV journalist Lisa Ling) and Lee near the China-North Korean border on March 17. The two were reporting about the trafficking of North Korean women at the time of their arrest, and it’s unclear if they strayed into the North or were grabbed by aggressive border guards who crossed into China. A cameraman and their local guide escaped.

As a result, the two women were sentenced to 12 years of “reform through labor” in a North Korean prison.

In drumming up support for Ling and Lee, Ashton suggested using the power of the Internet abroad to help out.

“we should find out what the largest social network site in china is and run a campaign to encourage the people there 2 help,” he continued. “Bottom line, China needs to step up!”

On Monday, White House deputy spokesman William Burton released a statement, saying President Barack Obama was exploring “all possible channels to secure their release.”