Il Young Jeong
Senior Research Fellow_Institute of Social Science_Sogang University
In July 1953, the Korean War reached not an end, but a suspension through the signing of the Armistice Agreement. As a result, the two Koreas established the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), extending two kilometers from the Military Demarcation Line on both sides. The areas adjacent to the DMZ, referred to as the border region, encompass 15 cities and counties across Gyeonggi-do, Gangwon-do, and Incheon Metropolitan City. These border communities have long borne the frontline pain of division, directly experiencing the consequences of strained inter-Korean relations.
During the 21st presidential election, President Lee Jae-myung emphasized the need for “special compensation for special sacrifices” made by border residents. Such recognition is not only justified but overdue, given the decades of hardship endured by these communities. In this spirit, since taking office, the Lee administration has suspended loudspeaker broadcasts and leaflet campaigns along the border. These measures have encouraged reciprocal steps from North Korea and represent efforts to restore a semblance of normal life for residents of the border region.
On August 13, Korea’s National Planning Committee held a public reporting session and presented 123 key policy tasks. Among them, Task No. 116 is explicitly titled, “Resolving the Pain of Division and Humanitarian Issues.” This highlights the government’s recognition of the suffering borne by border residents and the need for concrete measures of support and healing.
In this column, I argue that addressing the pain of division requires a sustained focus on the lives of border residents. Supporting and healing these communities is not merely a matter of compensation, but a critical step toward reconciliation and peace on the Korean Peninsula.
Special Compensation for Border Residents
During the 21st presidential election, President Lee Jae-myung stressed the need for “special compensation for border residents who have endured extraordinary sacrifices since the division of the Korean Peninsula.” He further pledged to “take the lead in ensuring a peaceful daily life, better living conditions, and a future grounded in peace for these communities.” In particular, he underscored the importance of “swift compensation for the physical and psychological stress experienced by border residents.”
The National Planning Committee has also reflected this priority by listing “Building a Life-Respecting Society Safe from Disasters and Accidents” as the ninth of its twelve strategic tasks. Within this framework, it specifically pledged administrative and financial support to restore the daily lives of border residents harmed by loudspeaker broadcasts and waste-filled balloons launched across the border. In line with this, the National Assembly amended the Civil Defense Basic Act in December 2024, and the government revised its enforcement decree in May 2025, which officially took effect on June 4, 2025.
Beyond compensation, the government has also laid out broader policy goals for the development of border regions. In particular, under the Peace Economy Special Zone Act, it plans to swiftly designate special economic zones for peace, while developing the DMZ and adjacent southern border areas into an international eco-peace tourism cooperation district.
Is Support for Victims Too Complicated?
What is regrettable is that government support for the pain of division experienced by border residents has been overly focused on monetary compensation, and the procedures are excessively complicated. For decades, residents of the border regions have endured the suffering of division amid deteriorating inter-Korean relations. In particular, since the inauguration of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, this suffering has reached an extreme. Cross-border loudspeaker broadcasts shattered daily life, while waste-filled balloons from the North and propaganda leaflets from the South have made tension an everyday reality in border communities.
The suffering of border residents must be addressed not only through financial compensation, but also from the perspective of healing the trauma of division and providing psychological support. Yet under the revised Civil Defense Basic Act, the current framework for assistance to border residents has been designed almost exclusively around a complex compensation system.
For instance, when South Korean citizens suffer damage to life, body, or property due to hostile acts from North Korea:
1. Victims must first file a report with the local administrative office;
2. The local authority then investigates the damage;
3. The results are submitted to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, which processes the compensation claim;
4. The ministry’s Victim Support Review Committee finally decides whether to grant compensation.
In cases of noise damage, a “noise impact assessment” is conducted, and the region is categorized into three zones to determine the level of compensation. The result is an excessively complicated procedure that burdens residents rather than relieving them.
The real problem is that such measures are far removed from the daily reality of border residents, especially their need for psychological healing from the pain of division. Another challenge is the lack of coordination between compensation policies and broader regional development efforts. Victim support for border residents is overseen by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, while the development of Peace Economy Special Zones and the DMZ International Eco-Peace Tourism Cooperation District is handled by the Ministry of Unification. This institutional divide undermines a holistic approach to healing the wounds of division in border communities.
Healing the Hearts of Border Residents: The True Victims of Division
The suffering of residents in Korea’s border regions is neither recent nor temporary. In areas along the inter-Korean border, citizens have long endured direct and indirect harm under persistent tensions between the two Koreas. Border residents live with the weight of division-related trauma, anxiety disorders, and other forms of psychological damage that cannot be quantified in monetary terms.
Government-led financial compensation is certainly necessary. Yet what border residents need most are spaces, programs, and sustained support that allow them to heal in their daily lives. From this perspective, the Ministry of Unification must take the lead in addressing the pain of division and ensuring support for these communities.
It is essential to establish a support system in which the Ministry of Unification and local governments in the border region work together to ease residents’ burdens and promote psychological healing. First, facilities and programs should be created where border residents can freely access counseling, therapy, and healing services. One possible step would be to establish a “Division Trauma Healing Center” at the Korea Unification Future Center in Yeoncheon County, Gyeonggi Province, under the Ministry of Unification, while also building local healing facilities across border municipalities for easier community access.
As the Lee Jae-myung administration moves to relax regulations in border areas, there is also room to explore healing programs within the Civilian Control Zone (CCZ). For example, Camp Greaves Historic Park operated by Gyeonggi Province, or privately managed sites such as the DMZ Forest, could be developed and supported as eco-healing spaces. Such initiatives would not only provide therapeutic value but also reframe the border region as a place of peace and reconciliation.
The Ministry of Unification already has experience in operating psychological treatment programs for North Korean defectors. Given the recent decline in the number of defectors resettling in the South, it would be worthwhile to consider making more effective use of professional staff at Hanawon (the Settlement Support Center for North Korean Refugees), a specialized institution under the ministry. In addition, various healing programs currently offered through the Inter-Korean Integration Cultural Center could be expanded and adapted for border residents.
At the same time, efforts to heal the pain of division should be linked with broader initiatives already underway. These include the establishment of Peace Economy Special Zones, the development of the DMZ International Eco-Peace Tourism Cooperation District, and programs in peace, unification, and civic education. For example, the ecological restoration projects proposed in the master plan for Peace Economy Special Zones and DMZ eco-tourism could be integrated with healing facilities and programs that directly address the trauma of division.
Addressing the Pain of Division from the Victims’ Perspective
The Lee Jae-myung administration is pursuing “special compensation for the special sacrifices” endured by border residents. The necessity of such measures is clear. Yet more than anything, it is important to ask: from the perspective of those who have lived with the pain of division for so long, what forms of healing can truly mend their hearts?
First, the compensation procedures currently carried out under the Civil Defense Basic Act must be simplified in order to minimize the inconvenience faced by victims. Equally essential is exploring ways for residents to have access to healing facilities and programs as part of their daily lives, as previously proposed.
In addition, the pain of division is not borne by humans alone. Loudspeaker broadcasts across the border, military drills, and other tensions may have caused even greater harm to livestock, companion animals, and the diverse forms of life inhabiting the border region. Special compensation for the pain of division should not stop at human victims, but extend to the healing of nature itself. Only by doing so can the process of reconciliation truly embrace both people and the land they call home.
*IL-Young Jeong is a Senior Research Fellow at Sogang University in Seoul. His key research interests include North Korea's social control system, inter-Korean relations, and peace on the Korean Peninsula.
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