60 years ago today...

60 years ago today, Korean War started (June 25, 1950). For the 36 years of the Japanese Occupation of Korea (1910-1945), thousands of Koreans, including several members of my family and my extended family, were raped, tortured and slaughtered by the Japanese until America ended the war with the dropping of the two atomic bombs.


Upon Japanese unconditional surrender on August 15, 1945, an agreement was reached between the United States and the Soviet Union for the division of Korea.   This was done without our involvement:  the United States occupied South Korea and the Soviet Union occupied North Korea.

Began on June 25, 1950, N. Korea invaded S. Korea. The Korean War was a conflict between the Communist, North Korea, and the non-Communist, South Korea.  Many Chinese and American young soldiers died in addition to the countless Koreans casualties.  Many Korean War veterans suffered for post –traumatic syndromes.  My mom suffered. My dad suffered. My grandma suffered. I am their daughter and granddaughter.

There is a proverb in Korea about shrimps and whales. The little shrimps’ back get broken, when whales are fighting. Korea is the little shrimp while the US, Russia, China, and Japan are the whales. Korea’s back was broken in half into North and South. Whales either cover it up or erase history: the little shrimps with broken back are crying for their families, unbearable anguish, and the hope for the reunification of the two Korea. Divided in two always made us the victim country. On Korean Thanksgiving day and New Years’ day, some Koreans travel as far as they legally can within the DMZ. Facing to the North, they bowed down to the ground in front of the food-laden table and using chopstick, tossed some food to the North. This is where they left their families and where their hope to see them again. They cry in the DMZ longing for the family in the other Korea.

No matter how many different views I can think of, one thing never change— without our involvement, the Korean peninsula was split between the US and Russia in 1945 at the 38th parallel upon the surrender of Japan. I disagree with the statement, ‘Korean War is Korea invading Korea’ and I state that the major cause of the Korean War was from the involvement of the other countries, the rivalry between the communist and capitalist ideologies. The two superpowers governed by the same fear, each feared that the other would engulf the world. The communist and capitalist ideologies needed a battleground. Therefore, they used the land of Korea as slaughtering many innocent people in the process. Koreans have been suffering for years from the psychological impact of the War, which can be as destructive as actual wartime experience.

After having a prolonged treacherous fighting for three years and one month, it ended on July 27, 1953 without the signing of a peace treaty. Sixty years later, we are still at war— Real peace has not been shining at my birth land. 

War is not an answer.
War is not an answer.
War is not an answer.