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| Lee Soon-kyu, 85, smiles as she meets her 83-year-old former husband, Oh In-se, living in North Korea, during reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War at Mount Geumgang resort in the North, Tuesday. Over 500 elderly people from the two Koreas gathered for the reunions that took place for the first time since February 2014. / Yonhap |
Reunions take place at Mount Geumgang
By Joint Press Corps, Yi Whan-woo
Over 500 people had emotional reunions with their relatives and family members separated by the 1950-53 Korean War at the Mount Geumgang resort in North Korea, Tuesday.
A total of 389 South Koreans and 141 North Koreans hugged and collapsed in tears in the rare reunions, the first since February 2014.
Most of them were aged 70 or older.
They included Lee Soon-kyu, 85, who met her 83-year-old husband, Oh In-se, from the North for the first time in six decades. Oh left home in South Chungcheong Province in June 150 for military training and went missing.
They were the only couple among those at the Tuesday's gathering and they were accompanied by their son, daughter-in-law and Oh's elder sister from the South.
In a meeting with her graying younger brother, nephew and brother-in-law from the South, Rim Ri-kyu, 85, shared stories of her late husband, Cho Ju-kyung.
Cho was one of Pyongyang's most recognized mathematicians before he passed away in 2002 at age 71, according to Rim.
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| Lee Jeong-sook, 68, from South Korea talks to her father Ri Heung-jong,88, from North Korea at Mount Geumgang, North Korea, Tuesday. |
For Yeom Jin-rye, 83, and Kim Soon-tak, 77, their chronic back pain and asthma did not stop them from reuniting with their respective brothers in the North.
Yeom, who has a damaged spinal disk, and Kim, an asthma patient, instead rode in an ambulance to cross the Demilitarized Zone.
Sitting in a wheel chair, Yeom unpacked a bag full of letters and photos for her elder brother, Yeom Jin-bong, 84, who was taken to North Korea in 1951.
Kim, who relies on an oxygen cylinder to breathe, said she was not sure whether her elder brother, Kim Hyung-hwan, was alive after he was forcibly taken to the North.
This was the first day of the week-long reunions, which are taking place in line with the Seoul-Pyongyang agreement on Aug. 25.
This was also the 20th inter-Korea family reunion since June 2000 when a historic inter-Korean summit took place.
Divided into two groups, the first group of reunited relatives is scheduled to meet their loved ones in both private and public space until Thursday. A total of six meetings will take place, including three on Wednesday and one on Thursday. Each meeting will last for up to 150 minutes.
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| Families separated by the 1950-1953 Korean War talk and share South Korean cookies at a reunion held at Mount Geumgang, North Korea, Tuesday. |
The second group will meet from Saturday to next Monday at the same venue. It will be comprised of 255 South Koreans and 188 North Koreans.
The reunion this time came after growing concerns over the dwindling number of separated family members and their deteriorating health.
Only 66,000 war-divided family members remain alive in South Korea and half of them are aged 80 or older, according to the unification ministry.
The first group of for this year's reunions was initially comprised of 394 people.
One of them decided to forego the meeting before the government asked them to come to Sokcho, Gangwon Province, Monday, to provide travel guidelines to the North.
Four others gave up after they arrived in Sokcho.
Among the two groups for this year's reunions, the oldest member is Koo Sang-yeon, a 98-year-old South Korean. He will join the second group to meet his two daughters.
Unification Minister Hong Yong-pyo said Monday he will step up efforts to hold reunions regularly.
