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All stories are culled with consent from Korea JoongAng Daily’s website and edited by Groove Korea for length and clarity. The opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent those of Groove Korea. — Ed. N A T i o N A l N E w swith June 2014 / www.koreajoongangdaily.com GwANGJu ANNivErsAry mArKED by mAss boycoTT The government’s commemoration of the 34th anniversary of the Gwangju Uprising was recently held in its namesake city. But the event was overshadowed by an all-out boycott by the victims’ families and oppo- sition politicians, who were protesting the rejection of a symbolic song as the event’s official anthem. The ceremony was held at 10 a.m. at the National Cemetery in Gwangju, with law- makers from the ruling Saenuri Party and outgoing Prime Minister Chung Hong-won among the approximately 1,500 in attend- ance. But nearly half of the seats at the com- memoration were empty, the result of an unprecedented boycott by the victims’ fam- ilies and lawmakers from the main opposi- tion New Politics Alliance for Democracy. It was the first time all the relatives of the massacre victims shunned the event. They decided upon the boycott after the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs refused to designate the symbolic song “The March for Thou” as the event’s anthem, which reignit- ed a controversy that flared last year over the same issue. “The March for Thou” is mostly associated with the struggle for democracy, as it was widely used in pro-democracy street rallies in the 1980s by student protesters. The song was composed a year after the 1980 Gwangju Uprising, which left hun- dreds of pro-democracy activists and ordi- nary citizens dead at the hands of military forces under the Chun Doo Hwan govern- ment. The boycott was also attributed to the ministry’s decision to prohibit participants from singing the song along with the choir during the ceremony. NPAD cochair men Kim Han-gil and Ahn Cheol-soo skipped the government ceremo- ny at the request of civic groups in Gwangju. The opposition and bereaved families have long demanded the pro-democracy song be recognized. But the ministry has so far denied the request twice, claiming it is unprecedented for the government to designate a particular song as the anthem of an event. Throughout the 10-day Gwangju Upris- ing, citizens took up arms and formed civil- ian militias, claiming control of the city. A bloody crackdown followed after the Chun Doo Hwan regime sent in special forces. According to government data, 191 ci- vilians died during the massacre, but civic groups and relatives claim that as many as 606 people lost their lives. TrAiN To DorAsAN sTATioN iN DmZ rEsumEs The train to the demilitarized zone run by the Korea Railroad Corporation started ser- vice again after a four-year break. The train travels between Seoul Station and Dorasan Sation, which lies inside the DMZ, twice a day. The service started in April 2002 but was suspended by the Ministry of National De- fense in 2010 after one person tried cross- ing the DMZ into North Korea. Service resumed on May 4 and the trains depart from Seoul Station at 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Returning trains leave Dorasan at 12:10 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. There are 136 seats and 14 standing room positions. The train stops at Neunggok Station, Munsan Station and Imjingang Station and takes 1 hour and 20 minutes. DMZ-Train, as it is called, is a remodelled diesel train with three cars, each with an individual theme: peace, harmony and love. The cars contain 150 photos about the Kore- an War and the ecosystem of the DMZ. Each car has screens at the front that show a feed from a camera at the head of the train. Tickets cost 8,700 won for adults from Tuesday to Thursday and 8,900 won from Friday to Sunday. There is no service on Monday and holidays. From Dorasan Sta- tion, travelers can visit the reopened Do- rasan Peace Park and (via bus) the third underground tunnel, built by North Korea to sneak agents into South Korea. Dorasan Peace Park was constructed by Gyeonggi Province in 2008, which spent 11 billion won. The park includes a museum of the ecology of the DMZ. Since the station is inside the DMZ, which is under the control of the military, tourists must carry identification and a round-trip ticket. “We expect the DMZ-Train to help the tour- ism industry an d also contribute to peace- ful relations between the two Koreas along with the government’s plan to build a DMZ World Peace Park,” said Choi Yeon-hye, CEO of Korail. “It will be a cornerstone for the Eurasia transcontinental railroad.” During the second half of this year, Korail will operate a new route from Cheongn- yangni Station to Baekmagoji Station in Che- orwon, Gangwon, the northernmost point of South Korea’s Gyeongwon line. The station was opened in November 2012. The 5.6-kilometer-long railway section from Sintan-ri Station to Baekmagoji Sta- tion had been closed since the outbreak of the 1950–53 Korean War on June 25, 1950. “It was a comfortable trip to cross the Civil- ian Control Line by train,” said Yoo Ho-sik, a 37-year-old passenger. “It was a great opportunity for my child to experience the reality of division,” he said. www.groovekorea.com / June 2014 24