"Mother! I killed people." This is the first part of a letter written to his mother by a young student soldier who took part in the Korean War. The letter was written by a third-year middle school student in Seoul. The letter continues: "Mother, the North Korean soldier's leg and arms fell off. It was such a cruel death. Even though they are enemies, I think of them as human beings, and moreover, thinking that they are people of the same language and blood, my heart is heavy and depressed. Why do we have to go to war?"
The letter from this boy is not the relief of surviving or the joy of victory over defeating the enemy, but the guilt of killing someone, a member of the same country and language, filled with fear of dying himself and filled with lamentation for the tragedy of war.
The Korean War that even young boys were driven into battle is now viewed as a past event that stopped over 70 years ago, but in fact, our country is in a state of ceasefire with only an armistice agreement without the war being completely over. To completely end the war, a declaration of an end to the war and a peace treaty must be signed, but inter-Korean relations and the international political order surrounding the Korean Peninsula are increasingly moving away from the path of peace.
North Korea continues to threaten military threats by firing missiles 18 times this year alone, and the ROK-U.S. combined forces have responded by strengthening military exercises and armed demonstrations, raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
Contrary to the trend of both South and North Korea pursuing "peace by force" with the show of powerful weapons, the Catholic Church is concerned that such an arms race is not the answer to a peaceful solution."We need also to ask ourselves how sustainable is stability based on fear when it actually increases fear and undermines relationships of trust between peoples. International peace and stability cannot be based on a false sense of security, on the threat of mutual destruction or total annihilation, or on simply maintaining a balance of power" (Fratelli Tutti #262).
To those who judge inter-Korean relations mainly based on political and military interests, the church's teachings about national reconciliation, unity, and peace may seem naive—failing to understand the world. However, just like the young student soldier who did not forget that the enemy is a human being and that they are of the same ethnicity in a war in which they killed each other. We, as believers, must develop a view toward peace, not hatred and hostility, that sees them as people rather than enemies.
It is known that more than 4 million people have been infected in about a month since it was officially announced that there was a confirmed case of Corona 19 in North Korea last month. We are concerned because vaccines and treatments are not provided to North Koreans who have suffered from food shortages for a long time and have poor nutritional and health conditions. However, only the poor North Koreans will suffer amid concerns from the South that humanitarian food and medicine aid will not be accepted for fear that the regime's incompetence will be exposed.
In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution for a truce on COVID-19 where fighting was going on to help in the fight against the pandemic.
Cardinal Tuxson, then Secretary for the Promotion of Integrity and Human Development, also called for a global ceasefire during the pandemic and suggested the money spent on weapons be used in the fight against the pandemic.
Wouldn't it be great if the two Koreas could spend the money they now use on their weapons against each other for relief and health care for those suffering from disease and starvation? If our believers first give bread and fish to their struggling brothers in North Korea, just as the Korean church promoted the "Vaccine Sharing Movement" last year, wouldn't it be a beautiful miracle for everyone living on the Korean Peninsula all will full stomachs enjoying peace?
