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North Korea¡¯s Guidance Bureau for Comprehensive Development of Scenic Spots, which manages the tourism resort on Mt. Kumgang jointly with South Korea¡¯s Hyundai Asan, said Saturday the shooting death of a tourist from the South was wholly due to the mistakes of South Korea. In a statement, North Korea demanded an apology from South Korea and measures to prevent such an incident from happening again. Except for one line that said it ¡°regretted¡± the incident, the North Korean statement was full of criticism of South Korea for halting the tours to Mt. Kumgang, saying the move was a ¡°challenge¡± and ¡°unbearable insult¡± to the communist country.
This is stubbornness goes beyond the realms of reason. Heated rhetoric is nothing new from North Korea, but this tops everything we have seen before. The incident involves a North Korean soldier killing an unarmed South Korean woman by shooting her in the back. And she was dressed in civilian clothes as well. According to a formal agreement the two Koreas signed involving entry to and sojourn within the resort, North Korea is responsible for the safety of South Korean tourists. Even if a South Korean tourist violates regulations, North Korean authorities are required to stop the tourist first and then begin investigation. Yet before it took any other measures, North Korea simply pulled the trigger.
The North said a sentry fired warning shots before shooting the tourist, a 53-year-old Seoul housewife named Park Wang-ja. But a witness said only two shots were heard, and Park had two gunshot wounds. There is a strong possibility that no warning shots were fired at all. North Korea said Park left her hotel at 4:30 a.m. and walked 1.1 km to a fence enclosing the tourist beach. North Korea said Park then climbed over the fence and walked another 1.2 km until she came in front of a military guard post. After hearing a sentry tell her to stop, Park then ran back 1 km the way she came, until she was shot at 4:50 a.m. Thus the North Korean account.
If North Korea¡¯s explanation is true, then in a span of just 20 minutes, Park would have traversed a distance of 3.3 km on ankle-deep sand. That means she traveled at a speed of 9.9 km/h. A healthy person in their 20s jogging briskly on level ground achieves no more than 8-9 km/h. So North Korea¡¯s account makes no sense. It is hard not to be suspicious that the North is hiding the truth to cover up responsibility. The only way to get to the truth is for a South Korean fact-finding team to go Mt. Kumgang and investigate the scene. But North Korea is refusing to allow this.
North Korea said it would not allow any more South Korean tourists until the South apologizes and offers measures to prevent such an incident from happening again. Asking hundreds of thousands of our citizens each year to pay $80 per person in entry fees to risk their lives in such a dangerous place is not normal.
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