Don’t Blink: Constant Surveillance at the DMZ
The last stop on our DMZ tour had to count as one of the most surreal moments I have experienced – right up there with that time I watched The Wizard of Oz synced up perfectly with Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon.” Both trips were amazing, but only this one left you feeling uneasy and awed at the same time. After two security checks and a debriefing, our tour finally arrived at the Joint Security Area (JSA), aka Panmunjeon, aka Truce Village. The space itself is reminiscent of a high school campus, or perhaps two rival high schools situated directly across from one another. As with any good rivalry, there is a continual vibration of tension that lingers in the air; you can feel it as soon as you drive through the front gates of the JSA. In fact, there’s even a 15 minute orientation in which visitors are told not to point or make any other gestures to N. Korean soldiers lest they look forward to sparking off World War Three. One element of the JSA that I found striking was the amount of one-ups-man-ship between the two sides. Just because they can’t shoot at one another doesn’t mean they can’t take pot-shots. For instance, a border town in South Korea built a 100m tall flag pole, only to be out done a little while later by the North, who built a 160m tall flag pole. Perhaps in response, South Korea then went on to build a shiny stainless steel and glass border patrol center, which stands in stark contrast to the weathered concrete building on the North’s side. Yankees versus Red Sox. Duke versus North Carolina. Pepsi versus Coke. Great rivalries indeed, but they all pale in comparison to North and South Korea. Click for (lots) more.
