Today is Memorial Day (현충일) in South Korea. It is a day off to remember those
who died during past significant battles, most recent of which being the Korean
War (June 25th, 1950 to July 27th,
1953) between South Korea and North Korea. Although July 27, 1953 marks the end
of the fighting and the establishment of the 38th Parallel as a
political division of the Korean peninsula, the tension between the two sides
is still high. My students are always eager to express their anger towards Kim
Jung Un and the rest of the North, but most of the kids also dream of the day
they will be reunited. The Korean War is also known as “The Forgotten War” or “The
Unknown War” due to the lack of attention it received at the time as it’s occurrence
was nestled between the more significant WWII and the Vietnam War. Those titles
are a bit ironic, I’d say, since the war is technically, still not over.
Korean history is
a fascinating subject, perhaps because a war from over 50 years ago is still an
apparent threat. However, on a day-to-day basis, the talk of such politics is
not heard amongst South Koreans. With the recent string of threats from North
Korea now behind us (Thanks, China, for silencing the big guy), it is more
clear to me why South Koreans are not really disturbed by anything the North
says anymore. Their reaction to the media hype is calm and the opinion is more
that it is all very ridiculous. It has been going on for more than 50 years,
after all. But still, some foreigners did pack up and leave in a hurry after
Kim Jong Un urged the foreign community in South Korea to do so. Perhaps it was
just another attempt he made to harm the South’s economy. I don’t know if
Reunification is a real possibility, ever, but I do hope for a peaceful Korea
in the near future.
