Korea and Taiwan: Tigers Rising - Dragons and Tigers: A Geography of South, East and Southeast Asia - page 374

Figure 13-10
Buddha for “Reunification Desire” at T Tonguasa
T Temple near Daegu (T (Taegu).
Photo courtesy of B. A. Weightman.

Extant differences make reunification problematic.
North Koreans are not even an eighth as rich as South
Koreans. South Koreans are twice as numerous. North
Koreans have virtually no idea of how to function in a
modern, technologically advanced society .
North Korean defectors encounter great difficulty in
the South, despite being offered generous financial aid,
job training, and other assistance. They have trouble
dealing with the competitive nature of a market society ,
handling money , and making wise choices among com-
peting goods. They have discovered that their DPRK ed-
ucation is insufficient given the need for computer skills,
grasp of English, and knowledge of Chinese written
characters. Furthermore, many of the more than 6,000
defectors suffer psychological problems much more so
than do immigrants from other countries.
There are only 24 telephone lines between Seoul and
Pyongyang, and these are rarely used. In the 1980s, a vis-
iting DPRK delegation accused the South of rounding up
every car in Korea to create traffic jams in Seoul. Even
the language has evolved differently , with the South' s
technological vocabulary unknown in the North.
Raising the North' s productivity level to stem a
southward flow of migrants would cost billions. Al-
though the South has traded with the North since
1990—food for raw materials—investment has been se-
verely limited by the DPRK government.
South Korea wants to reunify in stages: diplomatic
contacts to build trust; investment in special economic
zones in the North; and, down the line when the eco-
nomic gap has been narrowed, full unification. In

2000, an historic event took place. President Kim Dae
Jung of South Korea met with President Kim Jong II of
North Korea to reduce tension between the two coun-
tries and promote peace and reconciliation. This deci-
sion, made by President Kim, became known as the
“Sunshine Policy .”
As a result of the meeting, both sides have stopped
propaganda broadcasts across the border and allowed a
limited number of cross-border visits for family reuni-
fication. Symbolically , North and South Korean ath-
letes marched together under one flag at the Olympic
Games in Sydney , Australia, in 2000 and in Athens,
Greece, in 2004. A joint team was also sent to the Bei-
jing Games in 2008 and, for the first time in history ,
the Olympic torch was brought from Seoul to Py-
ongyang. More talks are scheduled in the future. Kim
Dae Jung has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for
his efforts toward peace in the region. However, North
Korea' s recent nuclear program threatens reunification
considerations.

Taiwan: Little Tiger and
Big Dragon

Small but rich, economically powerful but politically iso-
lated: this is Taiwan, an island just 100 miles (165 km)
from the big dragon, mainland China (Figure 13-11).
The history of Taiwan is inextricably tied to that of the
People' s Republic, and its current development remains
couched in that relationship. It is one of East Asia' is newly