Offer a North Korean Soldier Ice Cream. . . and get Detained
by Richardson ~ September 17th, 2006. Filed under: North Korea.
From AFP: North Korean detains 1,000 SKorean tourists: report
Up to 1,000 South Korean tourists were detained briefly in North Korea on Sunday after a lawmaker amongst them offered snacks and ice cream to a soldier, a report said.
The group was visiting Mount Kumgang, a craggy tourist enclave in the eastern part of the Stalinist state, when the incident happened, according to tour operator Hyundai Asan, who was quoted by Yonhap news agency.
The tourists were detained for some 40 minutes after the contact between a North Korean military guard and Cha Myung-jin, a lawmaker of South Korea’s opposition Grand National Party, the report said.
The South Koreans were later released and deported home, reportedly after the South Korean side apologized and promised such unauthorized interaction would not happen again.
Amid easing tensions between the two Koreas, more than a million tourists have visited the rugged terrain just a few miles (kilometres) north of the border with South Korea since tours began in November 1998.
Visitors to Mount Kumgang enjoy circuses, listen to old Korean ballads, and soak their limbs in natural hot springs, but they are prohibited from stepping outside the zone to talk with North Korean people. (emphasis added)
Such dastardly behaviour – giving ice cream to a soldier for Heaven’s Sake – cannot go unpunished!
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September 17th, 2006 at 9:33 pm
Yep, we see yet another example of the wonderful successes of the sunshine policy.
September 18th, 2006 at 1:46 am
Great. Now that poor Soldier is enroute to a camp where his next ice cream will be soyalent green.
September 18th, 2006 at 4:43 am
Looks like those tourists got what they paid for.
September 18th, 2006 at 5:47 am
It’s one of those things that, I would hope, would make even North Korean’s think ‘WTF?’ Detain everyone for giving food?
September 18th, 2006 at 6:53 am
“Amid easing tensions between the two Koreas, more than a million tourists have visited the rugged terrain …”
That is a remarkable figure showing one of things that the Sunshine Policy has achieved.
The NK reaction to the ice cream incident seems to have gone overboard, but people have to understand the North Korean point of view. NK authorities are very sensitive about the poverty of their country, and they don’t like the image of the proud North Koreans receiving handouts from tourists, especially a North Korean soldier getting treats from a South Korean politician.
All the tourists are given guidelines prohibiting certain things, such as handing out food and goodies. More than any other tourists, the South Korean lawmaker should have been careful not to offend the NK authorities.
September 18th, 2006 at 7:05 am
Mi-hwa, that a lot of people have visited a mountain does not mean that the Moonshine Policy has achieved anything; it means that a) people want to visit a famous mountain; b) people want to experience going to North Korea, and; c) North Korea wants to squeeze as much currency out of the South as it can.
You may not be aware that the workers at Kumgangsan are not even North Koreans, but ethnic Korean Chinese. A few years ago the North Koreans got tired of the advances of South Korean men towards ‘their’ women, and made the change.
The Moonshine Policy remains an abject failure for the ROK, and KDJ even had to pay half a billion plus USD to get the June 2000 summit. No reductions to KPA on the border have been made. No reduction of missiles or artillery pointed at Seoul. No cessation of nuclear programs.
The policy is, however, a great boon to the Kim Jong-il regime and KPA. Nothing like inspection-free food aid to help the party elite and army, and loads of dumb tourists willing to pay to support the regime.
September 18th, 2006 at 8:15 am
“NK authorities are very sensitive about the poverty of their country, and they don’t like the image of the proud North Koreans receiving handouts from tourists, especially a North Korean soldier getting treats from a South Korean politician.”
And whose fault is that NK is in such poverty in the first place. Can’t blame a SK politician for taking pity on a NK soldier who probably eats grass flavored ice cream instead of the actual real thing.
September 18th, 2006 at 9:14 am
quote….they don’t like the image of the proud North Koreans receiving handouts from tourists, especially a North Korean soldier getting treats from a South Korean politician……unquote
if they’re worried about handouts, they need to worry about the guards at the chinese border. as every single one of them can easily be bribed with 2 cartons of (probably even fake) dunhills.
and second, like that guard knew the occupation of each and every tourist. do these guards go through a walkthrough of intelligence data before every set of SK’s come through?
you mean well, but snap out of it and think logically sometimes.
September 18th, 2006 at 9:33 am
“The NK reaction to the ice cream incident seems to have gone overboard, but people have to understand the North Korean point of view.”
Yes, they went ridiculously overboard-1000 people detained and then deported? Over a friggin ice cream cone? NK is one royally screwed up place and the moonshine policy doesn’t seem to have done a damn thing to change that.
September 18th, 2006 at 9:57 am
I suspect that there is ‘more to the story’ than that reported in the sourced article … and I believe that a lot of it is because of the ‘criminal’ belongs to the GNP.
September 19th, 2006 at 7:13 am
Mi-Hwa,I knew it was you after the first sentence. You want to believe so very much. I remember when I felt that way. But I never felt that way about North Korea. I forget what her name was.