Why so calm about nukes?

An official from the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) checks the level of radiation contamination at the KINS monitoring station in Haengdang-dong, Seoul, Wednesday, following North Korea's third nuclear test. The figure shows the level is staying within the normal range of 5 to 10 micro Roentgen per hour. / Korea Times photo by Kim Joo-young

By Kim Jae-won

Most South Koreans appeared to show a surprisingly calm reaction to North Korea's nuclear test.

The financial market and most citizens didn't seem too worried about the reclusive state's test, although it would be disastrous if the Stalinist regime dropped a nuclear weapon on the South.

According to the defense ministry, the blast generated an explosive yield of between six and seven kilotons, about half the power of the atomic bomb which the United States dropped on Hiroshima, Japan in 1945, that killed between 90,000 and 166,000 people in the city.

Such indifference to the test was obviously a big contrast to the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami which hit the northeastern part of Japan. Many Koreans were apprehensive about the possibility of nuclear radiation coming from the East Sea.

Experts explain it with "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" story because Koreans have got used to the repeated threats from its trouble-making neighbor.

"It is a learning effect. People did not believe the boy the third time because he lied two times before," said Yang Yun, a professor of psychology at Ewha Womans University. "South Koreans have learned that the North is all bark and no bite, which makes them indifferent to the continuous threats from the country."

Yang warned that Korea could face a big problem if it overlooks the big threat posed by the North.

"The media needs to provide people with accurate information about the nuclear test. It can harm us seriously if not managed properly," the 54-year-old veteran scholar said.

Yang noted that Koreans showed a sensitive reacted strongly to the Japanese nuclear power plant incident because it was an unknown threat to them. If it happened repeatedly and turned out not to pose a big danger to them, they may be unperturbed by the issue, too, he added.

Some Koreans argue that they do not need to worry about the nuclear test because the North is targeting the United States, not the South. They also say that the test was just a gesture, which did not pose a real threat.

However, military experts say that it is naïve to believe such a narrative because the North is already capable of hitting the South with its missiles.

"The North has about 800 short- and mid-range missiles which can target South Korean cities. If they succeed in developing the technology to put nuclear weapons on them, it would be a huge threat to the South," said Kim Yeol-su, a professor of political science at Sungshin Women's University.

Kim added that it is ridiculous for South Koreans to be more concerned about the U.S. than themselves because they are the principle targets of the North if the Stalinist regime succeeds in developing its own nuclear weapons.

"Koreans are like patients with insensitivity syndrome. It is time to set up strategies to counteract the North's nuclear weapons program, in cooperation with the U.S. and other neighboring countries."

Site Map E-paper Subscribe Register LogIn
Site Map E-paper Subscribe Register LogIn