A South Korean’s Opinion of North Korea

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

^{Mihee and I got grabbed a bite to eat in downtown Pohang today and did a little shopping at the Lotte mall as well. It was pretty late by the time we drove back to Wolpo and we were both exhausted. The car was silent and I was on the verge of falling asleep. But, for some reason I started to think about an article I read earlier that day. It was about how North Korea was planning on attacking South Korea sometime soon (they had already “test” launched a nuclear missile last week- which didn’t even make it off the ground -> lol). So I asked Mihee, “what do you think about North Korea?” I thought her response was very interesting . . .}

^{She told me “Well, I don’t like North Korea, but I don’t hate them either.” She said that they were “pathetic”. She explained how South Korea gives rice and money to them all the time, because if they were to stop North Korea would attack them. Two years ago, in 2010, South Korea stopped supplying them with rice and money and North Korea launched a torpedo at one of their Naval ships. 46 people died. And what did South Korea do? Attack North Korea with full-force for unreasonably attacking one of their naval ships and killing 46 innocent lives? Nope. They did not retaliate. They did nothing. In fact, they gave them what they wanted- more money and more rice. Think of a spoiled child that doesn't get its way- that basically sums up the reasoning behind why North Korea acts the way they do. North Koreans are dirt poor and many starve to death. The US isn't providing them with any food or resources- so (like a child) they lash out, throw a temper tantrum, stomp their feet and make everyone else around them (aka South Korea) pay for their failures to govern effectively.}

^{Living here I’ve realized that South Koreans avoid confrontation at all cost and are (for the most part) very peaceful people. They always look happy, even when they’re not.}

^{So I asked Mihee, “why don’t you hate North Korea? They attack your country and your people, and they demand food and money from your government.” She said that the president of North Korea has “trapped the minds” of the North Korean people- that they don’t know any other lifestyle except the one they’re living. She told me “people are dying over there. Their president takes the food and money our government gives them and keeps most of it for him and his army. The rest of the population is left with close to nothing. And then he uses his army to attack us! It’s just one big vicious circle.” So I’m thinking to myself . . . okay, Kim Jong-un (aka the president of North Korea) demands rice, money and supplies from South Korea because he complains that his people are poor. And when receiving said supplies, he keeps most of it for himself and the army- and then he uses his army to attack South Korea. How messed up is that!?}

^{I asked her “why doesn’t your country just stop supplying North Korea with money and rice?” (not that I thought the issue could be resolved that easily, I was just curious about her response). She told me that South Korea is afraid that North Korea will attack them again, just like when they blew up one of their Navy vessels two years ago. They want to avoid as much conflict as possible- so they usually just end up giving them what they want.}

^{The car got pretty silent after that. We were both thinking about what to say next, but we couldn’t find the words . . .}

^{“North Korea is dark” Mihee said finally. “There are no lights.” She said the capital, Pyongyang, is the only city that lights up at night- the rest of the country is poor and dark. “No one is allowed to leave the country, and no one is allowed inside.” Mihee told me, “if I was born in North Korea I would commit suicide. It’s not a good place to be.”}

^{We pulled up to my apartment and I was sad that our conversation was ended so abruptly. I like hearing what Mihee has to say- her English is phenomenal and hearing her talk about stuff like this is very interesting to me. It’s amazing how much I learn here- from real people with real stories. It’s way better than learning from some dusty old textbook, that’s for sure.}

The world's most secretive country is also one of its darkest. This satellite image shows a drastic difference between North and South Korea at night. The capital of North Korea, Pyongyang, is represented by the little speckle of yellow near the western coast- it's one of the only places in the country with electricity. 

The bright line in the middle of the peninsula marks the demilitarised zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea. South Korea's capital, Seoul, is the blaze of white just across the border. 

This is a picture of the Korean Naval vessel, Cheonan, that North Korea attacked in 2010. 46 people were killed.