��http://economy.hankooki.com/lpage/economy/200604/e2006042017333470070.htm>
��Sino-Soviet Affairs, Vol. XVII, No. 4, Winter 1994/5, The Institute for Sino-Soviet Studies, Hanyang Univ.
Unification of Korea: two faces of one civilization
All the cries towards freedom and of sufferings, all the people who gladly dedicated their lives for our freedom and peace of, all the blood that flew through the history of our rivers, all the tears that dropped from our faces to the soils of our grounds, all the struggles that wished for a better world, and all the passion of our ancestors of patriotism to the flags of our nation: What were they done for? All that the people of this country sincerely wished for was peace upon our nation and the people to come as one. Despite of all the dedications and deaths of souls, we could not keep our people as one. This small nation had to be divided into two with people who were no better than barbarians who had to kill our own people, all the women and children, and even our own friends and their families. North Korea��s heart has never become one with us since the division and had left us from long. They never will come back to the grounds where we sat together as friends and brothers. Our history��s fate has hit the period of the Korean history and is turning the page for a new chapter.
There are two major methods of unification. First of all, the German style that requires force. We learn that history should not repeat itself. German��s powerful economic force broke down after unification and hasn��t still concluded peace through the country. Also, Shilla��s unification through force brought failures and left a graceful mark in our history. Force would only repeat another war of the many wars we had in the past and hardships of economic balance between the North and the South. Next is the Czech style, which is contrary from the German��s. They formed capitalism from socialism through the support of technological and fundamental resources. This may seem to be a peaceful way we can become one again, but there are negative outcomes hidden behind the Czech style unification. North Korea��s military will lean on South Korea��s economy when the two Koreas become one. We would confront unemployment, lack of supply and balance, and possibly even starvation. We will live in a country where everything seems to be falling apart for over 10 years. Unification just seems so far away to be achieved.
Another problem is economic gaps between the two countries that exist. The economic power of East Germany reached just 25% of that of West Germany, but our gap between the two Koreas overwhelms this figure, for the per capita GDP of South Korea amounts to 100 times more than that of North Korea. We have just climbed over the wall of becoming an advanced country but North Korea is one of the countries still struggling in absolute poverty. Unification would only make South Korea become a country of poverty due to unification burden. Just like the past when our country was so poor that we needed to make loans from other advanced countries. In short terms, we may be able to receive low wage labor force. However, on the other hand, in long terms, North Korea��s prices of commodities would rise higher than ever and so will the wage. North Korean��s production will not be able to follow this speed of production, and as a result, the wage competition when Koreas are unified will vanish, breaking down our economic system. Not only the gap between our minds but also the gap of our economy is also one huge river we would not be able to cross.
The next is one of the most important problems, a problem that may not be resolved forever. The problem may bring upon another war that may bring another unification by force and that wouldn��t be peace for long. This problem is ideology. Ideology varies from North to South Korea, even though we are just over ideological mountains. These great walls of our minds have divided us for years, and we have been divided not just literally but in the minds and the hearts. We now believe in different things; trust different people; live in different environments; learn and speak differently; follow different rules; have different fates. And now, after half a century of division, we have become different people. Ideology has made us think differently about our surrounding environments and ourselves. A few weeks ago, a collegian from the North came to the South and saw Kim, Jung Il��s picture getting wet of the rains. He cried and screamed. They have a faith in thing we can��t understand and this lack of understanding would bring many conflicts upon us. We believe we can be free from what we believe in and we are people of democracy, but they are so used to what others tell them to believe. Democracy might not be able to bring us together in our minds, but rather separate us in our faiths.
Another major problem after unification is the language. Although we use the same alphabet, we have different meanings for different objects and actions. We would not be able to understand what they are trying to tell us, and there would be conflicts through misunderstandings of communication. Even though we would one day use a unified language, we also would not be able to read the records and books of the past, because no one would remember the past language, just like the Egyptians. Unifying a totally different language is not so simple. Not only does it cost a lot of money, all the 80 million people of Korea must participate in using the same language. In addition, one of the North or the South must give up their language. The South certainly wouldn��t give up its language because it would be a waste of time just to learn a new useless language. And losing our language would be like losing all our history and culture, losing our identities, and losing ourselves. Our land may be unified, but our minds just seem to make bigger gaps as time passes towards the future.
Another problem to think about is how to deal with the war-polluted areas between us. Food shortage is already mentioned. But how would we actually be able to supply all the fundamental resources to North Korea after unification? We would need roads, trains and all the transportations. The road connecting the North and the South would become a stumbling block that cost too much. Also railroads would have to be built; buses and taxis would have to run; and all the streetlights would have to be built up. Who would pay for all these transportations and roads? Obviously we would. South Korea has to support not only the problems we have ourselves but also the problems of the North and the space between us. How long would it take and how much would it cost to clean all the weapons at the 38 line for roads? How would we be able to move all the military forces out to the borders? When would we actually even be able to visit the North when we have to build all the long roads through the mountains? When would these empty borderlands even be civilized? We would not be one even after unification. We would not be connected as one and never will. We were meant to be two from the moment our faiths and trust between us had been broken.
One big reason why either the government or the president denies unification is based on decisions such as, ��Who would be the new leader?, North Korean or South Korean?, or Where would the capital be?�� or even things like ��What would our new flag of the new country look like?�� Everyone would want what is better for his or her mother country. We can��t use any ��fairness�� in this situation like building the capital in the middle of the country. This is nonsense. It would also cost so much money that would waste and destroy the balance of our economy. So, the South would say for Seoul, and the North would for PeongYang. As it always did, this would provoke another fight right in front of the door to unification, leading to another conflict or war. We have been divided for so long as different cultures and now are no longer one. We are two different people, two different civilizations, and two different countries.
Last but not least, the most desperate problem after unification is to solve the political strategic differences between the North and the South. Will the new Korea become a communism country or a democratic country? Most of the countries nowadays prefer democracy, the most widely used strategy that brings upon maximum freedom, fairness and happiness to the people under its rule. But will Kim, Jung Il give up all his powers for the freedom of the new nation? Will he allow a new strategy upon his people and power? Will democracy be able to win when they are strongly bonded under communism? This biggest decision lies upon the faiths of the people. I would never give up democracy. Communism declares their people as fair but all they have become of are the slave of one man with absolute power. All the people of this country, including myself, personally don��t want to be controlled by someone else; I want to live out my own life, my way. Strategy of governing the people planted different faiths in the minds and hearts of the people. It might seem that we can��t be united because of one man��s greed and power, but it��s not what it seems to be at the outside. We think differently, react differently, obey differently, and feel differently deep inside. We must change before we expect anything from our country. Our minds must become one and be prepared before we can celebrate the day of unification.
In conclusion, South Korea has no need for unifying with North Korea. We have been different people of different civilizations through different faiths. We have more differences than similarities between us. It would take a long time and hard works to overcome these differences, and yet it may not be possible to achieve changes. We are already two different countries. Not only the economic and cultural gap but also the gap between the faiths of the people seems to be so far apart. We were born from the same ancestors from the very lands of ours, but now it seems too late to become one again. All the hard work and tears of our history might have reached its end, but history will be rewritten on a new page, as a new start and as a new faith.
Works Cited
Books l
Dalchoong Kim et al. Consequences of German unification and its implications for a divided Korea : Institute of East & West studies, 1992 l
Roy Richard Grinker. Korea and Its Futures: Unification and the Unfinished War : St. Martins��s Press, 1998 l
Sutter Robert G. Politics of Divided Nations : China, Korea, Germany & Vietnam - Unification, Conflict Resolution & Political Development : tmecca, 1991
Periodicals
��Dong Young Shin/Seoul ��TIME Asia Magazine�� ��Reunification�� Sep. 01, 2003
Internet Resources
��[Liberal Times] Challenges for Korea��s Unification: a German perspective, By Ronald
Meinardus ��http://economy.hankooki.com/lpage/economy/200604/e2006042017333470070.htm>
��Sino-Soviet Affairs, Vol. XVII, No. 4, Winter 1994/5, The Institute for Sino-Soviet Studies, Hanyang Univ.
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