SITIAWAN, Malaysia (BERNAMA) - "I know my daughter is living in fear although she told me that she and her family are safe there," said Maznah Adnan, who is the mother of one of the Malaysians now stranded in North Korea.
Iza Karmila Ramli, 33, and her husband Malaysian embassy counsellor Mohd Nor Azrin Md Zain, are still in Pyongyang after North Korea banned Malaysians from leaving the country on March 7.
Maznah, 63, said she last spoke to Iza Karmila on Tuesday afternoon via phone.
"She told me to be patient and not to worry as nothing serious will happen. But as a mother, I know she is scared. It's just that she doesn't want me to worry," she said at her home here on Thursday (March 9).
The couple's children are Annur Zulaikha, Aynur Zhafirah and Ayscha Zinnirah.
Since her daughter, the third of six siblings, was stopped from leaving North Korea, Maznah, a housewife, said she has been feeling anxious and could not she sleep well.
"We know how it's like in that country - it's very sensitive. I am so worried thinking about this," she said, adding that it was difficult to contact her daughter.
Iza Kamila is a diplomatic and administrative (PTD) officer, but took leave to accompany her husband in Pyongyang two years ago.
The last time she came back to Malaysia was during Hari Raya last year.
Maznah said her daughter had never complained of any problem in North Korea except for her difficulties in finding halal food.
"Since they were barred from leaving, their movements are restricted. The family is afraid to leave the embassy compound, including to send their children to school," she said, adding that she could only hope and pray for the safety of her daughter and her family.
(c) The Straits Times/Asia News Network 2017