DMZ - Part 2 of 2

Sign reads Happy Paju - Paju is in S. Korea

Encapsuling the hopes for reunification

Back to our tour.  We traveled by bus to the site of the Third Infiltration Tunnel.  It is called this simply because it is the third one to be discovered by the South.  

3rd Tunnel Reunification sculpture

Tunnel number 1 was found November 20, 1974, when some soldiers from the south noticed steam rising from the ground. This tunnel is about a kilometer long, but was big enough to allow about 2,000 North Korean troops to pass through in about an hour.  All of the tunnels were, actually. Well, long story short there, eventually gunfire was exchanged and several solders from the South and the U.S. were killed by explosives after the North’s retreat.  

Number 2 tunnel was found a year later, just west of the first, and under similar conditions.  Number three was discovered three years later, in 1978. This one extends almost two kilometers into South Korea.  Remember the demarcation line is only 2 kilometers from the actual border.  So this one almost made it.  More about this one later.

Number four tunnel wasn’t discovered until 12 years later, in 1990.  And it is located to the east of the first three, nearly on the other side of the country.  With all that empty space between the first three and the last one, there are quite a few suspicions that these four are probably not the only ones attempted or planned.  It is believed that there may be up to 17 of these tunnels throughout the DMZ.  

So where do they all head?  Directly to Seoul.

The only direction out

Third Infiltration Tunnel was discovered, not by accident but from an informant.  A military engineer from the North defected to the South and during the course of his retraining and interrogation, he provided intelligence about this third tunnel.  Location and planning, etc.  In order to pinpoint the exact location, the south dug water-filled pipes every 2 meters (about 6 feet) and waited for the blasting to reveal location.  It took two years before the tunnel was detected, and two more years for the south to dig their counter tunnel.  The North was not happy about being detected, and in the course of their retreat, painted the walls of the tunnel black.  This was their attempt to convince the south that they were coal miners.  Yep, “mining for coal in the DMZ”.  Really?!   Whether they honestly expected the South to fall for that or not, that was their story and they were sticking to it.  

Olivia and I at the 3rd Tunnel

Well, the result was the South prevented them from finishing it and claimed the tunnel on the South’s side of the border.  They closed it off and when they began tours to the DMZ this was one of the sites to visit.  It is also the closest you can get to the border without going to the JSA.  You are actually standing on the border and looking into North Korea from a meter away.  Just, it’s all underground.  The tunnel is long and narrow and accessed by a sloping shaft that is about 300 meters long.  The tunnel in the south is about 1 km and is only wide enough for two people at a time.  One column of people going to see the end of the tunnel and one column returning.  Still, it was big enough that, again, about 2,000 North Korean troops could have passed through in about an hour.  Or a spy, much quicker.

To get into the tunnel, we had to go through security.  No phones, no cameras, no electronics, no metal or coins.  And yes, the suggested hardhats were necessary.  Even for me! 

On a side note, when the North discovered that the South was making money from the tunnel as a tourist site, they demanded a portion of the profits… on the claims that since they built it, they should get the money from it…

Dorasan Observatory

Looking out over North Korea

Next we went to Dorasan Observatory (-san means mountain).  Here there were no photographs allowed beyond the marked yellow line behind the neck-high wall.  Seriously.  We were told that if we tried, the soldiers on duty (who spoke multiple languages- and fluently) would erase ALL photos on our cameras or phones.  Of course, there were some who still tried…  Not many, and I wonder if they were truly paying attention.  But, the soldiers usually gave a warning first, and then if you persisted they would take the device and return it to you when you were ready to leave.  

Unfortunately for us, the weather was not cooperating that day and it was foggy.  So any pictures we could get (behind the yellow line) were pretty much white.  I thought I had one that had something…Until I realized that I had a foggy shot of the wall…  but, you can pay \100 (10 cents) to look through binoculars into the North.  Pretty surreal.  

Dorasan Observatory

From there, we headed to Dora Station, that last station in the South, on a long-hoped for rail line directly to Pyeongyang.  It was used only briefly in the early 2000’s when North-South relations were at their height.  The claim to fame here (besides being in the DMZ, etc. ) is that they have the cleanest bathroom, anywhere.  Yeah, they were pretty clean.

You could also purchase a souvenir ticket and go out to the rail line and look around.  South Korean MP guarded the rail line, but they were more than glad to take pictures with us.  I wasn’t entirely comfortable with that, but in the end I was convinced.

Throughout our short trips to each site, we heard about two villages in the DMZ.  There are only two villages allowed in the DMZ.  One is in the North and one in the South.  The village in the South is called TaeSungdong, the village in the North is Kijongdong.  When the DMZ was formed there were people still living there, and so these two villages were created for them to stay if they wished.  However, because they live under certain rules and there are definite disadvantages to living in the DMZ, the South Korean government compensated them for living there.  No mandatory military service, no taxes, and a yearly allowance.  However, that has recently changed.  Because the land hasn’t been touched, except by these few farmers, and they do not use chemicals on their crops, their crops are deemed organic, AND they are highly prized for quality, farmers in the DMZ were earning almost three times the amount as other farmers and with all the government help, they were becoming fairly affluent, they now have to pay taxes and join the military.

The village in the North… Oooh, this is interesting!  The South believes that no one actually lives there. After all, why would the North encourage people to live THAT close to the border?  There are buildings that represent houses, hospitals, businesses, schools, etc.  There are lights in the buildings that go on by timers and crews of people are bussed in daily to represent villagers.  But the buildings are empty shells, and the village empties at night.  No one stays there. 

Dorasan Station platform

The distances are not that far

 In addition, the South built a flagpole.  Soon, the North built a taller one.  So the South built a taller one.  So the North built a taller one.  So the South built a taller one.  So the North built a taller one.  This one was the third largest flagpole in the world.  The South said, “Eh, whatever.”  This became known as the Battle of the Flagpoles.

Kaeseong is the industrial complex in the North that is owned and managed by the South.  They employ over 50,000 people and is one of the largest employers outside of the military.  They produce mostly clothing and household goods.  The employees’ wages are about \150,000 a month (about $150), half of which goes to their government.  So they make about $75 to take home.  This is actually quite a bit for the North, but still not a lot.  So the South gave them a monthly bonus of 1 Choco Pie, which would sell on the black market for about \10,000 ($10).  Well, then eventually, the Northern employees wanted a raise.  The South didn’t want to give them more money that would go directly to the government.  So they gave them 5-6 Choco Pies a month (an extra $50-$60).  Choco Pies cost about \120 (12 cents) in the South…

A section of the fence.  Notice the U-turn bridge  lined with concertina wire

From nothing 60 years ago to bustling modern metropolis

The DMZ itself has been pretty much untouched since the 1950’s.  Very few people are actually allowed inside the DMZ except in designated areas.  South Korea, and to an even greater degree North Korea, was devastated by the war.  People who had literally nothing, had to survive.  Both during the war and at the beginning of recovery, this meant “anything that moves or grows is food.”  It was a tough existence for the people and a tougher existence for the wildlife.  Large game pretty much disappeared from the mainland, and even from many of the outlying islands.  Upon the creation of the DMZ however, a “safe zone” for wildlife was accidentally created as well.  All the landmines aside, many types of animals found refuge inside the DMZ.  Many of the animal species that were decimated for survival outside, and not just in Korea but in many areas of Asia, are not only surviving, but thriving inside.  The DMZ provides a 150 mile long-2.5 mile wide relatively untouched nature refuge, and a home to some rare species, and to larger animal species as well.