Two Koreas agree to family reunion in late October

South and North Korea agreed Tuesday to hold a reunion of families separated since the Korean War late next month in North Korea’s Mount Kumgang resort.

A joint inter-Korean agreement was announced Tuesday at Panmunjeom south side Peace House after a working-level Red Cross meeting that lasted for two days. If the family reunion progresses as planned, it will be the first in 20 months since February last year. The Red Cross meeting is also expected to resume in five years since October 2010. The South and North shared grounds that humanitarian issues should be solved in a fundamental manner.

The latest agreement follows the high ranking official meeting on August 25, enabling the overcoming of obstacles for the two countries’ ties one again. Through the Red Cross meeting, the South Korean government will address humanitarian issue while opening a channel to discuss issues of mutual interest at the summit.

Under the latest agreement, the South will ask for confirmation of life for 250 North Korean people and the North for 200 South Koreans. Lee Duck-haeng, executing member of South Korea Red Cross who is South Korean representative for family reunion, said, “We wanted to actively engage in family reunions for military POWs, and so added 50 POWs to 200 ordinary people.” The 50 list will include South Korean defectors to North. The actually number of people meeting for reunion is 100 each for both Koreas totaling a combined 200 people. One or two family members can accompany mobility impaired people, pushing up the actual number of reuniting family.

The agreement came after more than 23 hours of marathon talks. The working-level Red Cross contact ended at 10:10am Tuesday local time after kicking off at 10:50am Monday. Lee said, “It took time because we wanted to include the phrase ‘fundamental resolution of family reunion issue.”

woohaha@donga.com