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A South Korean tourist was reportedly shot dead by North Korean troops at North Korea’s Mount Geumgang resort early on the morning of July 11. Shortly thereafter, the government announced it will suspend the Mount Geumgang tourism program temporarily beginning July 12 until a fact-finding investigation can be completed. The female victim was identified as Park Wang-ja, 53. She lived in the Sanggye neighborhood in the Nowon district of Seoul.

In an emergency briefing held on the afternoon of July 11, Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Ho-nyeon said, “The North informed Hyundai Asan, the operator of the Mount Geumgang tourism program, about the death of Park. The North said that Park had been taking a walk along the beach at the Mount Geumgang resort at around 4:30 a.m. on July 11. While walking, she entered a North Korean military zone after having passed through a tourist zone. The North said its troops shot her at approximately 5:00 a.m. because she didn’t obey their order to halt and ran away.”

This is the first time since the launch of the Mount Geumgang tourism project in 1998 that a South Korean civilian was killed by North Korean soldiers - either at Mount Geumgang or the Gaeseong (Kaesong) Industrial Complex, an inter-Korean industrial zone located at the North’s western border city of Gaeseong. In particular, the incident is expected to cause a ripple in inter-Korean relations because talks between the governments of South and North Korea have been suspended since the inauguration of President Lee Myung-bak.

After Park was shot, her body was moved to a hospital in Sokcho, South Korea, at approximately 3:00 p.m. that day, the Unification Ministry said. The ministry also announced that a government-led team has already begun to investigate the incident.

“Until the investigation is complete, the Mount Geumgang tourism program will be under temporary suspension,” Kim, the unification ministry spokesman, said. “We will take corresponding measures depending on the result of the probe.”

Accordingly, the ministry will suspend the tour program beginning July 12. South Korean visitors who remain at the North Korean mountain, will return to their homes after completing their planned tour schedule, the ministry said. However, the incident will not affect another tourism program to the Gaeseong Industrial Complex, according to the ministry.

Kim said, “The death of the South Korean tourist was extremely regrettable. The government will conduct a thorough investigation to find the facts. I hope North Korea will actively cooperate with the fact-finding investigation.” He added, “A government-led team, headed by Vice Unification Minister Hong Yang-ho, will conduct the fact-finding probe and devise the next steps.”

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