Red Cross Distributes Guide Book To South Korean Elders Providing A Long List Of Do’s and Don’ts For The Monumental Korean Family Reunion On Tuesday
For the upcoming reunion of Korean families on Tuesday at Mt. Kumgang resort, North Korea, organizer Red Cross has distributed guide books to South Korean elders containing restrictions, including topics on North's politics and living standards, reported CBC News on Sunday.
"In case your family members from North Korea sing propaganda songs or make political statements, please restrain them and try to change the subject," states the booklet.
Ahn Yoon Joon, one of the fortunate South Koreans picked by the lottery to reunite with family members from the North, lost his enthusiasm to meet with his two younger sisters who he has not spoken to for over 60 years, after reading the long list of don'ts on the book guide.
"You can't ask everything you want to ask," says Ahn. "This is not a reunion, but just a meeting that's staged."
Ahn wanted to find out how his parents died, but acknowledges that the topic could be politically related as their father was a wealthy landowner in the North.
"All I can do is to take down the dates my parents died," Ahn says, frustrated. "There's nothing else."
In addition to prohibited topics, giving of gifts worth more than $115 is also restricted under the U.N. Security Council resolutions enforced following North Korea's nuclear testing stunts.
According to Asia One on Monday, 394 South Koreans will be travelling to North Korea for the emotional reunion of Korean families separated in the 1950-53 Korean War. But first, they will be briefed at the Hanwha Resort on the details of the reunion, as well as their health care and guidelines in staying at the communist state.
The reunion on Tuesday has been feared by many to be cancelled by the North as previous reunions have been.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that the North tries to take advantage of Korean family reunions to boost their political and leadership image by threatening to cancel such events in exchange for their demands or as response to an unacceptable situation.
South Korea has been pushing the North to allow more family reunions to enable hundreds of thousands of families to reunite with their loved ones. Approximately 66,000 South Korean elders in their 80s and 90s are still on the waiting list to take part in the event, with other elders already have died before seeing their families from the North.