This video is going to look at the difference between North and South Korea and the challenges
of reunification.
After World War 2, Korea regained its autonomy from Imperial Japan.
On August 10 1945, the 38th parallel was established as the dividing line between the Soviet administered
North and American administered South.
The Korean war made this supposedly temporary division seemingly permanent.
We already know that after 70 years of separation, the differences between the authoritarian
North and democratic South Korea couldn’t be more profound.
There is constant tension from nuclear tests, military skirmishes, threats of turning one
side or the other into ‘powder’.
Even though officials from both countries met again in December 2015 to discuss improved
relations, the failed unification talks in 1972 and 2000, coupled with the intense secrecy
of Kim Jon Un’s regime, leave plenty of room for well-founded skepticism.
But let’s go deeper with this topic.
Anyone could tell you that finding the political will for unification will be difficult.
What would reunification actually look like?
The first factor is the means by which the unification comes about.
Since 1969, the South Korean Government has maintained a Ministry of Unification, which
plans for the scenario of a gradual reuniting of the two countries.
Indeed, most reunification plans are premised in gradual integration over time.
However, many experts believe that a total collapse of the north korean regime is the
only way reunification could ever truly happen.
But this is the nightmare scenario for world governments.
A sudden collapse of the North Korean regime would leave Nuclear Arms unsecured.
North Korea has nuclear weapons estimated between 10-15 kilotons in strength.
North Korea experiences nearly constant famine.
Collapse would lead to the evacuation of potentially millions of refugees to the South and to China.
In fact, in leaked documents, the Chinese already have emergency planning for this scenario
which includes gathering North Korean refugees in camps, turning back ‘undesirables’
at the border, and protecting North Korean military & political leaders from what they
call ‘foreign influence’.
But even if stage one after a collapse is handled orderly, there are huge obstacles
to a smooth unification.
First, after 7 decades of separation, the language and culture of the two Koreas has
shifted dramatically.
For example, though both dialects of Korean maintain similar grammar, experts estimate
that up to one third of words used on a daily basis have diverged, and it currently takes
north korean defectors up to 2 years to feel comfortable conversing in the South.
Second, Korean courts have the potential to be overwhelmed, as formerly held residential
and business property is reclaimed from the pre-separation times.
Health Care Infrastructure would also be a severe challenge.
The life expectancy in South Korea is currently 10 years more than in the North, and infant
mortality far lower.
Bringing the north’s hospitals into the 21st century, and retraining their doctors
would be pricey.
Another difference between North and South Korea is general infrastructure.
The North has between 12,000 and 20,000 miles of unpaved, crumbling roads with few privately
owned vehicles.
Their train system is ancient compared to the South’s high speed network.
Even the majority of their planes are outdated soviet aircrafts flying out of dilapidated
airports.
By far, the largest price tag would come from balancing economic disparities.
South Korean President Park Geun-hye describes the economic activity associated with unification
as a ‘bonanza’,
“Just as the German people secured freedom, prosperity and peace by tearing down the Berlin
Wall, we too must tear down barriers in our march towards a new future on the Korean peninsula,”
she said.
but according to the IMF and World Bank, South Korea is the world’s 13th largest economy
with per capita income of over 32,000 us dollars.
Meanwhile, the average north korean might take in about 2,000 us dollars per year, and
many of those are employed in the country’s massive 1.2 million man army.
The South’s economy is 43 times larger than the north and bridging the gap wouldn’t
be easy.
Overall cost estimates for all this, for total reunification vary widely, from 50 billion
to more than 3 trillion.
While the difference between north and south korea continues to grow, relations between
the us and another one of our cold war adversaries has thawed.
Click here to see a comprehensive history of that relationship.
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