The Korean Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) is known to be “the most
dangerous place on earth”. OK, that seems an exaggeration; I can’t help
but think central Africa, the Gaza Strip, or Middle Eastern war zones where
people are beheaded are slightly more dangerous. The DMZ is a place where any idiot with a camera, such as
I, can stroll around unharmed. Sure, some people have been shot here, but
that doesn’t make it the most dangerous. A more accurate description would be ‘the
most heavily guarded’. I’d rather take my chances here at the DMZ than on a
night out in Luton.
The tour starts at the DMZ Observatory Post, here you can look into North Korea. The main thing you can see is Kijong-dong, a village in the
North known as Peace Village, but outsiders know it as Propaganda Village. This
is a fake village where propaganda about the country’s great leader, and music
will play for 20 hours a day. It is all an act as no one lives in the village,
as you can see doors and windows painted on to the buildings. In the 1980s the
South Koreans erected a flagpole on their side of the border, only to be outdone by the North as they built
a taller one soon after.
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| The view of North Korea from the DMZ Observatory Post. It's difficult to tell from the picture but the trees stop suddenly on the North side of the border. This is to make it easier to spot any potential escapees to the South. |
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| Propaganda Village, a fake village visible from the South. |
The next stop on our tour was to look at the third infiltration
tunnel that was discovered by South Korean soldiers in 1978. The North used
dynamite to hollow out a tunnel, although they claim they were looking for coal…sure.
We entered the tunnel (not an innuendo), and it was, erm, a tunnel. Long, dark,
and narrow. Like most tunnels.
Soon after we went to Dorasan Station, a station that once connected
the two divided countries for all of… 1 year. As tensions grew once again they shut it down. The station was used to transport materials and goods to and
from Kaesong Industrial Region (a joint business venture by both countries, the
cheap labour of the North is utilised by major companies from the South).
Finally, we visited the Joint Security Area (JSA), an area
on the DMZ that is used to host negotiations between the two countries and the
United Nations. This room is on the border, quite literally half of the room in
the Republic of Korea (South) and the other half in the Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea (North). Prior to entering this room we were briefed on the
risks and we signed our lives away in expected fashion. We were under the
control of a 20-year-old American soldier, who openly said “I don’t care if I
cause open fire, but y’all might not like it” and “I don’t read books, I only
read magazines”, this was the guy in charge.
We stepped out onto the steps of Freedom House; we looked across
the JSA buildings, the North and South soldiers in stand-off, and Panmungak
(the main North Korean building). There was a huge amount of tension, none of
the tour group dared to speak; it was eerie, and dangerous. Apparently, when
out in the open where we were North Korean snipers are aiming directly at us,
anticipating any provocation.
We went into the JSA building where there were South Korean
soldiers on duty. They stood motionless wearing sunglasses (a scare tactic to
intimidate the Northern soldiers). They are all highly trained in Taekwondo,
and this was as close as I was willing to get to him.
The seemingly insignificant picture of the slabs on the
ground (above) do have significance. The concrete slabs represent the border
line between the countries, and standing to the left of the slabs shows that I
have crossed the border into North Korea. That’s something off the bucket list!
We were in the JSA room for 5-10 minutes before we were
ushered away.
The last stop before heading back to Seoul was at the Bridge
of No Return, a bridge used for prisoner exchanges after the cease-fire in
1953. Prisoners of war were allowed to choose whether to stay in the country of
their capture or cross the bridge to the other country, once a decision was made they could never
return, hence the really imaginative name.
The DMZ tour was very interesting; although very touristy
there are plenty of interesting sites of the formed of the divide. Whether you
know a lot about the Korean conflict or not I would still recommend it. If you
don’t know much about the North Koreans, allow me to summarise. North Korea
hate all Americans, with the exception of the eccentric, alcoholic, spouse beating, transvestite
that is Dennis Rodman. He’s the one they accept. If that doesn’t show how
fucked up their county is then nothing will.
