A Small Light in the Darkness

The division of the Korean Peninsula has always been fraught with tension and chaos. Multiple skirmishes have occurred since the ceasefire in 1953, and neither the North nor the South shows any signs of backing down to the other. Reunification is still simply a hope rather than a practical goal.

But amid the tension, a few occurrences over the years have shown promise—the multiple family reunions that have taken place between North Korean and South Korean families. On October 19, around 200 families went to North Korea to reunite with family separated when the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) went into effect.

Organized by the Red Cross, this was the 20th reunion to occur in the time since the war, but that has not been enough to accommodate the estimated 66,000 more families wishing to make the journey to find lost loved ones. Only a few hundred families can reunite each time. The lucky ones who are chosen via lottery to make the journey get to enjoy a meager two hours with their families. Even then, that time is restricted as North Korean leaders maintain a vice grip on proceedings, and any questions that could damage North Korea’s “reputation,” such as questioning whether relatives eat well, could put a halt to these reunions. The South Korean government even has a guidebook for the families on what topics should be avoided. This interaction speaks to the bigger question of Korean relations.

Tension between the two countries is nothing new. Border skirmishes have occurred intermittently ever since the end of the war; one of the bigger incidents in recent memory was when a North Korean torpedo sank a South Korean ship. These flares paint a poor outlook on any chances of reunification in the near future. It seems that each time a skirmish pops up, tensions rise for a little while before relations return to a neutral state again. A case in point was the latest border skirmish, in which South Korean soldiers were injured by landmines during provocations by North Korean soldiers. The incident resulted in artillery fire and a “semi” state of war, although no one else was hurt. Tensions abated when both sides apologized. This is a never-ending cycle without any real progress, and these reunions exemplify that trend.

The reunions are a monitor for Korean relations. The only time reunions are agreed to is during peace talks, and reunions will not occur during times of conflict. The North Korean government has cancelled reunions if times of peace turn into times of tension. Even when they do allow the reunions, it’s more in an effort to create a positive public image than out of benevolence. Take the guidebook, for example, which states that families are not allowed to ask questions regarding food, health, or other status questions that might affect North Korea’s “positive” image. Statistically speaking, the state of North Korea’s nutrition is rather poor, but obviously North Korean leaders prefer that word of mouth maintains the illusion that it’s doing fine. The reunions really do not matter as a whole because North Koreans are stuck under Kim Jong-un; as long as he and the rest of the North Korean leaders remain in power, relations between the Koreas will remain gridlocked.

This doesn’t mean that these reunions are pointless. For one thing, the fact that these reunions have continually occurred is at least a positive sign. Not to mention that perhaps the only chance at reunification is if the people on both sides of the DMZ want it, which could be spurred by further reunions which could, in turn, increase the population interested in reunification. The reunions have the possibility to be a stimulus for public action if enough people want to see their families more than just the two hours given to them. But in order for the reunions to become that stimulus, improvements have to be made. The improvements most needed for these reunions is to increase the number of people who can make the trip and the amount of time they are allowed. Two hours is ridiculously short for families who have spent decades apart from each other. The South Korean government should push not only for more reunions, but bigger ones during the peace talks, especially considering that many of the elderly people who were alive in the war may not have much time left to see relatives they remember. Nearly half of the estimated 130,000 people who requested reunion died before getting the chance to meet. This population contributes towards interest in reunification, and the more time passes, the more of this group is lost.

Unfortunately, signs of these changes have yet to occur, and with good reason given the history between the two countries. While these reunions may only be a small bit of relief at the moment for the families lost during the war, there is definitely a possibility for these small reunions to become something bigger.