We in the South must not, however, respond too emotionally. While an inquiry does needs to take place, it at least appears to have been an accidental occurrence. It needs to be kept separate from the Mount Geumgang tourism project and the Gaeseong (Kaesong) industrial complex and the whole of inter-Korean relations. There must be no careless intensification of military tension between the two sides.
Andy Jackson from The Marmot's Hole brought attention to this piece earlier today, reminding us that this is the same paper that has consistently been fanning the flames of hysteria and anti-LMB anger during this Mad Bull Shit.
I typed out a little response, but I'll leave it to abler hands. It looks like The Marmot's Hole was first with the story. ROK Drop has loads of information, and One Free Korea of course has a post up, too.
I fully expect teachers and students to take the streets in protest of this shocking incident. *cough* Just like how they paused all their "Korea's 9/11" hyperbole in February to mourn the 22 North Korean refugees who were returned by the South and promptly executed. *cough* After all, to modify what a 13-year-old told the Washington Post in the midst of this Mad Bull Shit:
"I could study hard in school. I could get a good job and then I could go on vacation and just die."
And here's a bit of an update, from CNN, while everyone here sleeps.
North Korea has blamed South Korea for the shooting death of a tourist near a mountain resort in the communist nation, according to reports.
A statement from the North's tourism bureau Saturday expressed regret for the death of the 53-year-old South Korean woman. But it said responsibility for the incident "entirely rests with the south side" and said Seoul should apologize, The Associated Press reported.
North Korea also said it would not accept a request that South Korean officials visit the resort for an investigation.
I always disapprove of foreigners who visit North Korea and give their money to that regime in exchange for a slightly more interesting Flickr page. If an abysmal human rights situation weren't a strong enough deterent, though, this case is another reason why I don't think it a good idea for tourists to visit that country.
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Some Korean netizens have ridiculed the hypocrisy of the Hanky, calling for mass candlelight protests at the Geumgangsan Resort. One commenter noted that not a single Korean has died of Mad Cow. Another reminded the Hanky of how it cried with indignation after two Koreans were beaten on a US military base. The comments getting the most recs at the Hanky are critical of its coverage.
With trepidation, I had a peek at a couple of Chinese news sites. The netizens haven't started chattering about the incident yet, but MSM coverage is quietly sympathetic, reporting statements from each side and illustrating with photos of the body and of grieving husband and son.
Hanky no longer even rates a sarcastic, disdainful post on my blog. That's how low it's dropped in my esteem. I would sooner blog about the turd I dropped last Friday, which was shaped like the playboy bunny (I kid you not -- or should I say I shit you not) than about anything the Hangyoreh does.
Funniest thing: the night I went out and discovered the V for Vendetta'ers and he Candlegirls, a journalism student tried to interview me and Scott. She was from "Hangyoreh School of Journalism" -an oxymoron if I ever heard one.
We basically told her the newspapers are crap, especially HGY, and didn't give her much else to go on for her assignment.
I agree with our comment, "I always disapprove of foreigners who visit North Korea and give their money to that regime in exchange for a slightly more interesting Flickr page."
I've often thought that, too. Let's call that kind of trip "vanity tourism."
"our" should be "your."
Just wanted to give you a little insight into why someone like me, who knows about the atrocities and the how tourism to NK directly funds the regime, would want to go and visit North Korea firsthand (I went to Kaesong.) Ignoring the fact that I am pursuing a masters in security studies with a focus on East Asia, there are many good reasons to for someone to take a trip to North Korea. It’s true, that money from the trip, including anything that I bought in North Korea, goes to prop up the destructive regime of Kim Jong-il. A quick look online shows that the North has gained at almost a billion dollars from Mt. Geumgang alone. Kaesong is just another money-making venture for the North. This part is indefensible. But in that same line of reasoning, my father funded East Germany when he and my mother made a trip to East Berlin when my father was stationed in Germany (US soldiers serving in the International Zone in Berlin had permission to cross into East Berlin.) My father said that this was one of the coolest experiences in his life. Were/Are both regimes bad? Yes. Did curiosity get the better of my father, and of me? Yes, it did. I do think it was fascinating to enter the Hermit Kingdom and see what I saw. I found it a very enlightening experience.
It's true, some people go to the North specifically to get a "slightly more interesting Flickr page." Yet the true benefit of this trip is that outsiders get to interact with actual North Koreans. This isn't Mt. Geumgang, where your in a penned off area with no glimpse of NK life. You are going through the second biggest city in the North. You get a chance to see people go about their everyday lives, and you get to glimpse things that the North does not want you to see. But the biggest benefit is that North Koreans actually get to see outsiders, see them come in their fancy buses and unfamiliar clothing. The sheer numbers of tourists going on this tour will convince North Koreans that this tour isn't simple for just those who are rich.
Writing in the Daily NK, Professor Andrei Lankov said: "North Koreans are interested in every move and gesture of the South Korean tourists. Even though they are forbidden to interact with South Koreans directly, the truth could soon spread. They will find out that South Korean tourists spend one quarter of their monthly wage (one dollar) to buy a cup of coffee.
Those who can meet and talk to South Korean tourists are security officers, which could number hundreds. Even if they are not officers, they should have passed security clearances. However, these people are human beings, too.
In the Soviet Union in the 1980s, many KGB personnel supported perestroika because they knew better than others how serious the problem in the country was. A larger number of security officers who know South Korea and South Koreans well could mean something.
In Kaesong, South Koreans could experience North Korea’s harsh reality, and North Koreans could see South Korea’s wealth. Some South Koreans criticize how the tour might support the North Korean regime. This is a rational suspicion. Indeed, the North Korean leadership permitted the tour to earn hard currency of their own.
However, the Kaesong tour certainly affects North Korean residents’ consciousness. In a long-term perspective, the tour business will lead to weakening of the regime and even regime change.
In the past, the Sino-Korean border was the only route information passed through. Now, there is another one through Kaesong." (http://http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk00300&num=3276).
In summation, I would never go to Geumgangsan (no interaction), and never spend the $4000 to take a trip to Pyeongyang to see the Arirang mass games (too much money in the NK coffers.) But this was an opportunity that I could not pass up. You can read about my experience and then judge for yourself.
http://ronink77.livejournal.com/38636.html
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