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Life Onboard |
LAST UPDATE
July 19, 2005
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| July 27, 2004 |
International Student Report - Narae Lee
Korean Peninsula Now: from the alternative perspective |
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| Narae Lee in an onboard presentation to participants |
Living in Soeul, South Korea as a student at EWHA University, and now an active member of a Korean
NGO, Narae Lee explained the history of the Korea peninsula and the impact of foreign involvement.
Narae pointed out that the Korean peninsula was one nation until 1945; the year that Japan left Korea
after a 38-year long occupation. But due to Japan's imperial rule Korea had become destabilized and
a separation of North and South soon followed. The catalyst for the separation was the beginning of
the Cold War between the U.S. and the USSR, as both superpowers ruthlessly asserted efforts to expand
their power around the world. The USSR quickly asserted power in the North, while the US began a military
occupation of the South. Shortly following, the US demanded that the USSR remain north of the 38th
parallel and the North-South demarcation line was created. After a series of disagreements, power
struggles, and the brutal Korean War of 1950 to 1953, the country was divided. A peace agreement has
never been reached and so, even today, the Korean peninsual technically remains at war. As Narae expressed, "We
never expected it to last for over fifty years." |
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| Displaying the map of the Korean Peninsula |
Since the division, the political climate of South Korea has undergone many changes. Eventually because
of the mass popular struggle against the dictatorship, South Korea achieved democratization. Growing
up with social activist parents, Narae remembers her parents being involved in protests against the
Korean dictatorship and even going to jail, but she had little interest in politics. "Before
I went to America I wasn't very concerned with the social movement...then I started to see things
differently." Upon arriving in the US to attend an exchange programme in New York, Narae's first
impression of the country was of different kinds of people living in harmony. However, she soon began
to see many conflicts and contradictions, especially surrounding the issue of the Iraq war. Narae
believed it was absurd for a huge country like America to go to war with Iraq, and this absurdity
began to cause her to fear that the next target could be North Korea. |
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Narae wanted to do something to show her concern. "I went to protest for the first time in another
country. I was excited that I could do something, but the people couldn't stop the war, and I was
frustrated. So, when I came back to Korea I began to work for a NGO." Now a volunteer at PSPD
(People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy), Narae keeps track of the international media and
CIA coverage of North Korea. By collecting this information the organization is better able understand
how North Korea is portrayed around the world and share this information with others.
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| Standing with friend in traditional Korean dress |
As a child living under the dictatorship, Narae explained that "All the information, all the
media reports, were censored by the government." Because of this Narae grew up with a very one-sided
view of North Korea. "I remember when I was in elementary school I drew some posters, and I drew
an evil looking person and wrote that Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung must die." Explaining the reason
behind this she said, "All children, including me, were educated that North Korea was full of
spies and evil. We didn't believe that they were people like us." |
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But now in South Korea perceptions of the North have changed. In 2000, the former President Kim Dae
Jung developed the Sunshine Policy to give aid and work to North Korea. Around this time, Narae
explained, "The two leaders had a summit, and it was the first time to see his [Kim Jong Il's]
real face and attitude. After seeing him with our own eyes people started to think differently about
North Korea. We saw that he was funny and diplomatic, and that he would be able to be a good negotiator.
This made it possible for people in the South to see, that North Koreans are also Korean."
Unfortunately, since this period of positive transformation the US stance towards North Korea has
shifted. Recently labeling North Korea as the third component of the so-called "Axis-of-Evil",
together with Iran and Iraq, the US is unhappy with South Korea's decision to continue to push for
the Sunshine Policy. However, Narae emphasized that the majority of South Koreans want things to
continue in a positive direction - and not to support the US policy of making threats against the
North. "Nobody wants war on the Korean Peninsula," she said. "The US claims this
is anti-Americanism, but we don't think so. Korean people have become logical and reasonable, and
now we want to make our own decisions." |
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