South Korea from war to modernity, march of development and success

South Korea, joins concerns with Japan, China, the United States and Russia over Pyongyang’s nuclear tests, which pose a grave threat to its national security and warn of a catastrophic war in Asia-Pacific region.

Once you arrive at Seoul-Incheon International Airport, the largest and main airport in South Korea, you will realize the value of hard work, scientific and technological progress, as well as the creative energies that have produced this remarkable cultural landmark.

Incheon is one of the largest and busiest airports in the world that has been rated since 2005 by Airports Council International as the best airport worldwide every year. It was also rated as the world’s cleanest airport and the world’s best international transit airport by Skytrax. The airport has a golf course, spa, private sleeping rooms, an ice skating rink, a casino, indoor gardens, and a Museum of Korean Culture.

We were a group of journalists, on a visit to South Korea upon the invitation of the Journalists Association of Korea to attend its annual conference held this year under the theme of “Media Role in Combating Terrorism and Promoting Global Peace and Security.”

On the way from the airport to Seoul we noticed the modern construction of tall buildings, elegant towers and innovative skyscrapers, which are the most dominating symbols that characterize the streets of the capital and other cities in South Korea.

In our first sightseeing- tour in the capital, we gained a deeper insight into the Korean history and culture and learned interesting facts about Seoul’s the historical places, a tour that included two of the capital’s five grand palaces . The name “Korea” is derived from the “Koryo dynasty that ruled the Korean peninsula as the Koryo Kingdom from 935 to 1392 ce. During this period the country began to form its own cultural tradition distinct from the rest of East Asia.

Located in the continent of Asia, South Korea covers 96,920 square kilometers of land and 2,800 square pop/kilometers of water, making it the 109th largest nation in the world with a total area of 99,720 square kilometers with a population estimated at 50.80 million people.

According to 2010 estimates around 46% of citizens do not follow a specific religion, 29.2% follow Christianity while 22.88% follow Buddhism. The number of South Korean Muslims is estimated at 45,000 indigenous people (approximately 0.09% of the population).

Our tour started at the largest palace of the Five Grand Palaces in Seoul “Gyeongbokgung” or Gyeongbok Palace, which was built in 1395 and considered the main royal palace of the Joseon dynasty . Gyeongbokgung served as the home of Kings of the Joseon dynasty, the Kings’ households, as well as the government of Joseon.

Gyeongbokgung continued to serve as the main palace of the Joseon dynasty until the premises were destroyed by fire during the Imjin War and abandoned for two centuries. However, in the 19th century, all of the palace’s 7,700 rooms were later restored under the leadership of Prince Regent Heungseon during the reign of King Gojong. Some 500 buildings were also restored on a site of over 40 hectares. This rich history gives the people a sense of pride of their past and empower them to shape their future.

Friendly people with poor English

Seoul is a safe city, where young ladies can walk freely at midnights on the roads and in public markets and without any fear. Despite their poor command in English, people are so friendly and do their best to communicate with visitors. I still remember a nice young couple, who were having a night walk with their toddler and how they approached, greeted us with smiley faces and offered to help.

Political tension with neighbors
A visitor can easily notice the increasing tension between North and South Korea, in news or statements delivered by officials and even when chatting with ordinary people. During the opening ceremony dinner an official told us that many of his relatives are still on the other side of the peninsula, and that they hadn’t met for a long time, either because of all restrictions or simply because they became old and cannot join their relatives any more. Despite the “Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)”, the official added, many of the North Korean defectors who managed to flee to South Korea were assisted, provided with food, shelter and jobs and qualified to positively engage with the community.

According to the Korean Ministry of Unification around 1,400 defectors had fled their country and reached South Korea in the first ten months of 2016, making the total number reach 30,000, Yonhap reported.
The (DMZ) is a strip of land running across the Korean peninsula that demarcates North Korea from South Korea. Roughly following the 38th parallel, the 150-mile-long DMZ incorporates territory on both sides of the cease-fire line as it existed at the end of the Korean War (1950–53). The areas north and south of the demarcation are of the most heavily fortified regions in the world.

Respect and honor sacrifices for Korea
During our stay, we had the chance to visit the city of Busan, which is home to the only military cemetery in the world managed by the United Nations. The cemetery was established in recognition of the sacrifices made by men and women who gave their lives in defense of their country. It contains 2,300 graves of service members from 11 countries, who were killed during the 1950-53 Korean War.

This peaceful park spreads across a grassy plain area of 135,000 m2 that includes a Memorial Service Hall, Memorabilia Hall, 2 Turkish Monuments, and Monuments of Greece, Australia, British Common Wealth Monument and 2 ponds. The citizens of Busan dedicated the Main Gate in 1966 and nowadays many annual events are held in the cemetery, some of the key events include: April’s Tributary Ceremony of the Veterans of the Korean War, June’s Korean Memorial Day, and October’s UN Ceremony Day.

Rapid Economic growth

South Korea achieved rapid economic growth during the second half of the 20th century, allowing the country to achieve a comprehensive development. Since the 1970s the country had rapidly developed its economy and industry after decades of the Japanese colonialism and years of the devastating war with its northern neighbor. By the twenty-first century, Korea has become one of the largest economic, commercial, industrial and technological forces of our modern era.

According to official statistics, by 2010, South Korea became the seventh largest exporter in the world. Between 2011 and 2013, the country’s total exports and imports amounted to one trillion US dollars. Thus, became the ninth country in the world to achieve the goal of 1 trillion US dollars in Annual Foreign Trade.

Jordan – Korea relations

The diplomatic ties between the two countries were established in 1962, resulting in signing several trade agreements, including the Trade Agreement in 1972, Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement in 2004 and the Investment Promotion and Protection of in 2004. The volume of South Korean investments in the Kingdom benefiting from the Investment Promotion Law reached $7.1 million until 2013.

In 2017, a cooperation agreement was signed between the two countries in the field of water management, distribution, water desalination, network management, reduction of water waste, exchange of water technologies and increasing the capacity of workers in this field.

Jordan imports from South Korea amounted to $542 million. Key imports include cars, car parts and supplies. The Kingdom’s exports to Korea amounted to 18 million dollars, which include copper scrap, aluminum, potash salts and base minerals. The number of Korean tourists who visited the Kingdom in 2014, stood at 15,366 visitors.

Economic opportunities
The two countries share a number of important economic opportunities that can boost relations and further develop all aspects of economic domains. Jordan can achieve its development goals by attracting South Korean investments and opening new markets for the Kingdom’s products such as the phosphates, potash, pharmaceutical industry and the Dead Sea products. It can also secure additional grants and soft loans to finance key development projects in the Kingdom.

Jordan can also learn from the Korean example in nuclear energy, manufacturing industry, research and economic development. Due to great demand for Korean cars in the Middle East, North Korea benefits from Jordan as an export hub in the region.

A number of Korean companies are actively implementing projects in the Kingdom in fields of energy, construction, power generating and thermal power plants. South Korea has also completed a project of building LNG tanks for Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company in 2011.