A view of Hwanghae-do, North Korea, as seen from the northern coast of Gyodong Island. A long line of white buildings stands out. "I envy the birds that freely travel between North and South Korea, unlike us humans who are blocked by barbed wire fences."
(隔江千里) This is a Chinese phrase that means although close together, as if there is a river in between them, it feels like they are a thousand miles away. This is a very familiar expression to the residents of Gyodong Island, Ganghwa-gun, Incheon, the ‘island closest to North Korea’. This phrase also appears in the title of a poem written by the late grandmother Lee Beom-ok (Cecilia), a first-generation displaced person from the North. This poem deeply expresses her earnest longing for Yeonbaek-gun, Hwanghae-do, North Korea.
Yeonbaek-gun, which was south of the 38th parallel at the time of division, was the same living area as Gyodong Island until the Korean War. As the bombing intensified during the war, the residents of Yeonbaek-gun took refuge in Gyodong Island. Their number reached 20,000, twice as many as the island's native population. However, after the armistice agreement, the western ceasefire line was established north of the 38th parallel, and refugees suddenly became unable to return to their hometowns. Quite a few people made Gyodong Island their new home. Most of them were skilled farmers who harvested crops from the Yeonbaek Plain, one of the most fertile areas on the Korean Peninsula. The displaced people worked hard to reclaim the wasteland on Gyodong Island in South Korea and turned it into fertile soil. Always harboring a longing for home.
Religious members of the Sisters of the Virgin Mary of the Martyrs stationed at the ‘Reconciliation and Peace Center’ in Gyodong are Apostles of Peace on the Island.
Ahead of the Christmas feast of the Lord, the journalist visited Gyodong Island, where the joys and sorrows of the displaced people are everywhere. It must have been the Lord’s will that the Sisters of the Queen of Martyrs, with a mission to the north, established the ‘Reconciliation and Peace Center’ on this land.
The Reconciliation and Peace Center, whose goal is to make Gyodong Island a bridgehead for peace, started in 2019 in a 10-pyeong commercial building. Afterwards, land was received from the Diocese of Incheon, and a new building was built to which they moved in June of 2023.
The center explains the history of the island to those who visit Gyodong Island and provides education on reconciliation and peace. They are also religious guides, holding Bible reading classes for local residents. These are all efforts of the church in hopes of peace. On the Feast of the Nativity of the Lord, the center directors Sister Kang Min-ah (Mary John) and Sister Ko Seong-sun (Marie Michelle) wrote a Christmas card to people living in the North, but it should be said that it was closer to a prayer without a recipient.
Gyodong-do peace activist Kim Young-ae (Therese, 67), representative of the ‘Our Nuri Peace Movement,’ said: "The nuns are encouraging the spirit of peace in Gyodong-do." As a second-generation displaced person Therese shares the same faith and dream and has helped the sisters to adjust to the island.
She said, “I am happy and grateful that the ‘Apostles of Peace’ have come to our 'Island of Peace'. I believe that the two nuns will make Gyo-dong an island full of blessings in the future through the peace and reconciliation movement.”
After seeing Therese off the two nuns and the journalist went visiting on Gyodong Island. The first place they stopped at was Daeryong Market, the center of Gyodong Island. It is a place created by displaced people from Yeonbaek-gun, modeled after the market in their hometown. It is a place like a ‘time machine’ that retains the appearance of the 1960s and 1970s, so many tourists visit it. The restaurant selling Hwanghae-do-style soup and cold noodles was crowded with customers.
The nuns of the Reconciliation and Peace Center were truly ‘popular stars’ in Daeryong Market. In every store we pass by, merchants say: “Sister, it’s been a while".
The nuns, who had been walking diligently amidst a warm welcome, stopped in front of an old store. It is the oldest general store in Daeryong Market, operating since 1952. It was a useful place that sold daily necessities to refugees, but now it was selling fur hats, toothpaste, etc.
The owner, An Sun-mo (Maria, 92), is a first-generation displaced person. When she was 20, she fled from Yeonbaek-gun to Gyodong-do and ran her shop for 70 years, raising her son to become a doctor. Her small two-pyeong store with a fireplace on Gyodong Island is a very familiar place on the island. She even refused her son's invitation to come to Seoul and live comfortably, she said. The journalist cautiously asked: “Don’t you want to go to your hometown?” The grandmother thought for a moment and then gave a short answer. "It’s good to go". In that fleeting moment, he could read the longing in the grandmother's eyes.
Another specialty of Daeryong Market is a musical performance performed by local residents. The band name is KD, an abbreviation for ‘Gyo-dong’. "We need to meet the band leader," He was none other than the Gyodong Mission Station vice president— Soon-bok Kwon (Joseph, 60), a native of Gyodong-do for generations. He welcomed the unexpected guests and showed them the practice room he had built within the center. Music classes are also held here for seniors. At the year-end concert held at the Reconciliation and Peace Center on the 2nd, Mr. Kwon presented a wonderful performance. As the conversation continued, we learned something unexpected. He was the youngest person to serve as vice president of the mission station.
The origins of the mission station go back to a religious community established by displaced people from Hwanghae Province as members of the Ganghwa Parish in the Diocese of Incheon in 1958. Currently, it belongs to Hajeom Parish. The situation between North and South Korea brought pain, but it also brought forth the fruits of faith.
Many of his friends have passed away, and they don't have anyone to sing anymore. Not long ago, he went to the hospital with some elderly people and it was heartbreaking. He hopes all of our friends stay healthy for a long time. “That’s my Christmas wish.”
“It is a great tragedy that we, who are brothers and blood relatives, hate each other and look at each other with hatred. “I hope the day comes soon when we can see each other as brothers and sisters again.” (Sister Marie-Johanne Kang Min-ah)
“I hope that our people will no longer be hostile to each other, but will embrace the pain and achieve reconciliation and unity in the peace of the Lord.” (Sister Marie Michel Ko Seong-sun)
