Introduction
The division of Korea was an event, which stemmed from the 1945 World War II victory of the Allied nations. The victory marked the end of the 35 year long Japanese rule over Korea. The division, resulted from the declined proposal, for the United States and the Soviet Union, to transitorily occupy Korea, in the form of a trusteeship.
The trusteeship, was intended to bring about the establishment of a Korean provisional government, which would be liberated to independence, after gaining stability. In line with the proposal, elections had been scheduled, a move that the Soviet Union refused consenting to. The refusal by the Soviet Union, was mainly because the elections would be administered in a free and fair manner, across the two Korean divisions.
As a result of the non-cooperation, a communist nation was formed, under the directive of the Soviet Union, at the Northern division. A pro-western state was also established at the South Division, through the backing of the two super powers. Also, the two super powers, backed the different leaderships of the different territories, which led to the effective establishment of the two states. However, the two states claimed superiority over the entire Korean region (Landsberg 71).
Discussion
The Korean War of 1950 to 1953, was a war between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, backed up by China and the Soviet Union; and the Republic of Korea, backed by the United States of America.
The war was primarily, the result of the political separation of Korea, which was made through the agreement by the Allied Nations after the World War II (Cumings 607). The impacts of the Korean division on South Korea are many, and they include land border issues, maritime incidents, and air attacks by the North Korean authorities.
Other impacts include the democratization of South Korea. After the division of South and North Korea; the political climate was a cause for the political evolution of Soul, after running from authoritarian rule to democratic governance. Through the democratization of Southern Korea, the South Korean economy was able to establish an increased number of relations with foreign countries.
As a result, the southern territory was able to develop security and foreign issues, which greatly affected the democratization of the state and the ability to establish cross-strait relations. This in turn contributed to the development of the state in its different aspects. These include the trade relations between South Korea and Taiwan (Lee 124).
After the division, South Korea was forced into the domination of the territory by foreign powers. The effects of this domination may be seen in the area of the victimization of the people of South Korea, especially the women living at the Cheju region. Long after the division, the women at Cheju have had to condone to sexual exploitation by foreigners, especially Japanese men.
However, after a lengthy period of such victimization, the women at the Cheju region resolved to enter into prostitution business, a case that can be traced to the bereavement of a majority of them, after the 1988 attack on the group branded the Guerillas. The effect of their decision to move into sex tourism is evident up to date, and is a case which is known among church leaders and administrative authorities.
For instance, during a 1988 International church seminar held at the YMCA, church affiliates were reported, as saying that there was a need to have more Japanese tourists visit the Cheju region, as they would bring money into the area. The same people are quoted as reporting that the income from the sex tourism business, increases the endowment of the church in the area of giving (Lee 124).
The division of Korea, also resulted in the instability of the South Korean state, a situation that pushed them into becoming reliant on nuclear war strategies, drawn from the superpowers backing them. For instance, it was reported that during the 1990s, there were enough nuclear bombs in the South Korean territory, enough to vandalize the entire Korean Peninsula biologically.
According to the reports, there were between 120 and 1200 nuclear bombs, owned by the Unites States, at the South Korean state. During the same period, there were also more than forty thousand U.S ground troops in South Korea.
Further, the autonomy of the U.S in the area of using nuclear bombs at the South Korean region, shows that South Korea fell into foreign dominance soon after the division. This is the case, as it is illegal for America to start the use of nuclear weapons in Europe, except at the South Korean region, where they carry on such activities without the permission of local authorities (Lee 124).
South Korea also became a pollutant-dependent nation after the division, mainly because of the establishment of poisonous production plants. For instance, there was the incidence of a boy who had died, after working at a mercury-producing factory for a period of six months. The case shows that South Korea, fell into chemical exploitation after the division of the different states. Further exploitation can be traced in the challenges placed in the way of the agricultural sector in the South Korean region.
These include the strategy to keep South Korea under the rule of the U.S. During the 1990s, Korean farmers were under the threat of being faced out of the agricultural production platform by the U.S. For instance, the U.S importation of beef products into South Korea, led to the loss of domesticated animals, like cows, and in other cases, the suicide of the indebted farmers.
This was the case, as these farmers grew into debt, to the level that they could not keep their lands, thus becoming mere tenants. From the case, it is evident that foreign dominance was killing the Korean economy to its advantage (Oberdorfer 472).
Other effects of the division of the two Koreas, include the land border attacks on South Korea by the North Korean forces. Some of these attacks include the April 1970 attempt, the November 1974, the recent 2006 attempts by the North Korean military, seeking to cross into South Korea, and the November 2010 attack on South Korean military training grounds. From these attacks, South Korea has had to remain on alert, ready for an attack from the North Korean forces, a case that led them into instituting readiness drills.
These may be traced to the November 23, 2010 attack, which came after the Northern authorities had warned against planned military preparedness drills by South Korea. The drills were taking place at the Yeonpyong Island, where North Korean forces attacked. From the attack, there was an exchange of fire, which led to the death of 4 people and 15 others injured.
This clearly shows the subjective treatment of South Korea by their North Korean counterparts, which has been the situation for South Korea, ever since the division. Other areas that South Korea has had to cultivate attack preparedness, include air operations and centers, especially after the 2003 attack by a North Korean jet fighter, which had entered the South Korean territory (Craig 75).
Conclusion
The division of Korea into the Northern and the Southern territories, took place after 1945 World War II victory of the Allied nations. The planned unification of Korea through a free and fair election failed, after the Soviet Union failed consenting to the proposal, a case that led to the creation of two autonomous states, backed by the Soviet Union and the United States. However, that was not the end, as the two states and the respective leaderships, were competing for autonomous control over the entire Korean Peninsula.
As a result, the conflict culminated into the Koran war of 1950-1953. After the war, the two states were declared autonomous. However, North Korea continued its revolt against the autonomy of the Southern state, attacking it both from land, borders and air. The effects of the division of Korea on the South Korean state, include the range of attacks by the Korean forces, the democratization of the South Korean economy, and the domination of the territory by foreign nations, these including Japan and the United States.
Other effects include reliance on nuclear war strategies, South Korea hosting a pollutant – dependent economy, and the exploitation of the South Korean economy by foreign nations. The forms of exploitation evident at South Korea, include sexual exploitation from Japanese men, and economic exploitation by the United States.
Works Cited
Craig, Albert. The Heritage of World Civilizations, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall Publishers, 2012. Print.
Cumings, Bruce. The Origins of the Korean War: Liberation and the Emergence of Separate Regimes, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1981. Print.
Landsberg, Martin. “Korea: Division, Reunification, & U.S. Foreign Policy.” Monthly Review 7.9 (1998): 71–77. Print.
Lee, Ki-baik. A New History of Korea, Seoul: Ilchokak Publishers, 1984. Print.
Oberdorfer, Don. The Two Koreas: A Contemporary History, Boston: Addison-Wesley, 1997. Print.