By ANDY JACKSON
Marmot??s Hole Guest Blogger
While the fate of dozens of Japanese citizens kidnapped by the Norks continues to influence how Tokyo does business with Pyongyang, the fate of hundreds of South Koreans similarly taken seems to barely raise an eyebrow south of the DMZ.
But the issue is sometimes (very gently) raised:
Red Cross officials from South and North Korea will meet Tuesday to discuss ways of confirming the whereabouts of South Korean soldiers and civilians forcibly taken to the North during and after the 1950-53 Korea War, Seoul officials said Monday.
The three-day meeting at the North’s scenic Mount Geumgang will also address whether to hold another round of video-link reunions for family members separated by more than half a century, and the issue of allowing exchanges of gifts and letters between the separated families, the officials said.
To his credit, President Roh has pledged to try to help reunite abductees with their families. But I can’t help but worry that they will drop way down his list of priorities at the slightest hint of displeasure from the Norks. Let’s see if the former human rights attorney sticks to his guns on this one.
UPDATE: Just to make sure that everyone understands the issue, the abducted South Koreans include many taken decades after the war ended:
Sphere: Related ContentA good example is the case of five South Korean high-school students who disappeared from island beaches in 1977-78. They all were believed dead (presumably drowned) for two decades, but in the late 1990s it was discovered that the youngsters were working in North Korea as instructors, introducing would-be undercover North Korean operatives to the basics of South Korean culture and lifestyle.
5 Comments
at the end of the day, how many NK septagenarians you gather are gonna stand up and be counted as “abductees?”
JJ,
I guess I should have pointed out in the post that many of the abductess were taken in the 1970s and 80s. I’ve updated the post.
ahem… good of the state sounds too communistic: enhanced career oportunities or for patriotic reasons might be more fitting.
A good example is the case of five South Korean high-school students who disappeared from island beaches in 1977-78. They all were believed dead (presumably drowned) for two decades, but in the late 1990s it was discovered that the youngsters were working in North Korea as instructors, introducing would-be undercover North Korean operatives to the basics of South Korean culture and lifestyle.
LOL What could they possibly tell them - ‘We’ve got multi-storey apartment blocks now, and you should see the Hyundai Pony!’ Honestly, the NORKs could do better by simply using a confiscated DVD player and some SK disks smuggled in through China.
I never really knew what to make of the SK abductee issue. None of the administrations, conservative or liberal, ever really did anything about it. Maybe there’s not much that can be done about it.
The Japanese have had fewer abductees and they made more noise about it. But even they aren’t having that much success with it, except for the return of a few people and a few bodies.
Since Pyongyang finally has admitted to having kidnapped Japanese nationals, diplomatic relations with Japan might be an incentive to finally resolve this issue for them, but I don’t think there is anything that Seoul can offer that would resolve the much larger issue of South Korean kidnapees.