The hidden village just metres from North Korea | BBC News
The tiny village of Taesung sits deep in the heart of Korea’s Demilitarised Zone - the strip of no-man’s land separating North and South Korea.
The community of South Koreans, many aged in their 80s and 90s, live mere metres from North Korea, meaning they must be guarded day and night by hundreds of soldiers.
The village was established at the end of the Korean War as a symbol of peace, but 70 years later, the Korean Peninsula is still divided, and over the past year tensions between the two countries have flared.
The BBC’s Seoul correspondent Jean Mackenzie has secured rare access to the village, the people who live there and the soldiers who guard them. Filmed and edited by Hosu Lee.
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The old lady that offered cabbage to the cameraman reminds me so much of my grandma…still kind, loving and persevering through life after having for sure lived through so much trauma and hard times. Wishing nothing but the best for all Koreans, may the Kim dynasty meet its end soon.
But watch how she react when she met the northener. Eventough that's lawfully and politically correct reaction, I think ,humanely, she shouldn't rat the escapee to the military.
@The EdgeOfUnknown. . . Sweet Grandma!😊 I've been to SoKors' Nonsan Province and lived there for more than a month, old people who are farming do offer and gave some of their crops . .when i do my walking and passby an ajushi or ajuma, i do receive some tomatoes. . .cucumber. . .onions. . Etc...from them...
@@rajoarcheryutama its not only lawfully and politically correct reaction, its what she's used to. Her husband was killed by North Koreans, leaving her to care for their 6 children alone. Do you expect her to be kind to the people who killed her husband? I appreciate you're empathy, but empathy is a luxury for people like us who haven't experienced tragedy from war. You just cant judge her reaction based off of that.
'people like us" is doing a lot of heavy lifting
She was probably thinking wtf am I going to do with all these cabbages 😂 it’s what I was thinking.
Harvesting crops with soldiers watching, feels like an apocalypse movie
we are in an apocalypse movie
The world is dystopian, a bleak universe is all we got
Maybe only to you but I would love plus not pay for tax and rent lol just have a hot girl living with you with 20 kids and live life with latest technology
That village is an administrative district for the U.S. military. Exemption from conscription and taxes. Even the President of Korea cannot enter the country without US military permission.
@@villagecat5539👍👍☝🏾 Vow really dude this news if it’s true then it’s unbelievable imagining such rules N laws do take place in a unknown village .
not sure why captions are missing in some parts but: 3:20 "after the armistice, there were no [buses] at all. Then they started to come once a week, once every three days..." and 3:41 "it would be nice [to do my hair] once every month, but it's too much of a hassle."
At 3:20 she says, "Even right after the armistice, I barely ever saw any vehicles* pass through the village. Then they would arrive once a week, then once every 3 days, and now it's 3 times in a single day." 3:41 "It would be nice to go once a month, but I'm lazy*." (Assuming she is alluding to how out-of-the-way and inconvenient it is to leave the village even for a haircut, which is why she says she is "lazy")
thank you ！
Thank you! I was just about to comment on the poor translations from BBC.
@@1certainTy for the accurate translation!
BBC sucks with the translations
I'd reckon that village has absolutely no crime.
ofc when theres only few dozen gramps and grannies and armed soldiers
하지만 군부대 인근 마을주민들은 군인들에게 편의서비스를 제공할때 바가지요금을 요구합니다. 한국에서 군인은 사회 최하위 계급취급하고 있습니다.
Well they basically have a private army 😂
One of those grannies gotta be secretly doing some internet piracy
@@user-vg5hc3bc8qYeah, it’s not like they would be the first line of defense for the people. 😤🤬🤬
I'm a Korean living in Paju, but it's my first time seeing the life of a Taeseong villager. Thank you BBC.
I was in the US Army in the 1960s. On one tour of duty, I was at a base near Dongducheon. On another tour, I was stationed near Paju ree. I've seen recent images of both areas and find it beyond amazing how different the country is now. Third-world to first-world in one giant step.
The reality of families having been seperated after the war, the elderly would certainly want Korea united, but perhaps the youth don't know much about this unless they listen to the elderly. Makes me think about why they might choose to live there, in remembrance and hoping to see thier family again.
And it’s heartbreaking
Plus the people who live there get lots of privileges like tax and military exemptions. Their crops are also sold at a good price
I literally got teary eyes when that old man told the reporter about his older brother who got trapped in the North when the war broke. That's really sad not knowing whether your sibling is dead or alive at this very moment.
It’s devastation and unbearable pain created by men to separate from love ones. Unbeknownst to those who cultivated this painful policies already they have their consequences,no criminals will be at large forever, they will test painful consequences on judgement day Because of worldly materials, power, to conquer to divide and with greediness the tiny minority set it an agenda and political strategy and ideology that they propagated , promoted and manipulated. None of young generation of today or tomorrow will ever understand why’s but few who are gifted with consciousness knows why certain powerful, educated , intelligent with principle thoughts and patriotic nations were targeted and isolated or sanctioned. If you ever been bullied at school and everyday new kid is used against you and none of these kids you wronged but one devil kid is bullying everyone against you and the devil kid won’t leave you alone until you bow to the devil and if you agree to become puppet then the devil targets the next kid. But if the other kid refuses to be bullied the rest of the kids will be used a weapon against him/ her. This world will never get better either in peace or in equality, the powerful puppets will always be used to attack the helpless or the weak , no matter how hard people fight back with words, pen or with platforms justice will never prevail on this planet, the very reason God created two paths, the good and the path and will have our certificates for the next life and will know who wronged who? Every cold case you ever wondered who killed who, you will witness and all secrets will become no secrets PERIOD Try to pick the good path and avoid worshipping worldly materials and hurting others
@@YourSense114 Try to pick the good path and avoid worshipping worldly materials and hurting others But you also say, the very reason god created two paths. So either path is gods path. You religious people are the dumbest people on Earth. Why must you go with some book with stories. Make up your own mind and be free?
It’s a bit sad to think one day this village will be as deserted as the one that sits in the North…
the north Korean village is always used as a propaganda "city", you could actually see that the village actually has some modern tall buildings to prove that the north is a capable county, but it is just a shell nobody lives there except for military
No it won't.
Same I doubt … NK will collapse
My father fought in the Korean war 1950-1953, he was 17 when he was drafted. He passed in 2016. Towards the end of his life, he talked about the war, very traumatic stories.
그의 노고에 감사합니다. Thank you for your service.
@user-vg5hc3bc8q Thank you for recognizing his service❤️🇺🇲❤️🇰🇷❤️ I hope one day there's peace.
Same with my father
Idiot@@user-vg5hc3bc8q
🇰🇷🇺🇸🇺🇳 👮🏻♂️👮🏼♀️👮🏾 🗽
Praying for reunification. My mom’s siblings were separated by the war & she’s never heard from or seen them since late 40s. It’s truly unimaginable & heartbreaking.
you know why , Truman said no do not attack korea and general MacAther the the USA army in 1950 invaider Korea
As long as the Dictator and the family bloodline is in power reunification will never ever ever ever (did I say ever?) happen because they would lose too much control and that is the thing that scares them to death is losing power and control of the people and money.
Never heard of these two villages in any other video i've ever seen on north korea.. Thanks BBC
"We don't have to serve in the military" Oh Sweetie, you already are. Living under these conditions is your service.
Don't all South and North Koreans have mandatory military service?
@@WilldyPS3 I think its just males for south korea that have mandatory service
@@chan13153 It was a boy who said it
@@chan13153 ? isn't NK mandatory service like 10 years
@@WilldyPS3 probably an exception for just those villagers then
"Tae Song Dong" is how we G.I.s (Second Infantry Division) knew it, when I was there in the 1980s, pulling patrols inside our small section of the DMZ and pulling duty on the observation posts inside the DMZ itself: "Guard Post Oullette" and "Guard Post Collier". It was my understanding that the North Korean "propaganda village", Kijong-dong, was uninhabited, but every day the North Korean authorities would truck in civilians to farm the fields, etc.. They would trucked back out in the evening. The North Korean flag, mounted on their pole (which of course is higher than the flagpole on the South's side), is supposedly the largest flag in the world. Like the soldier, here, explained, there is no physical barrier separating the Northern half of the 4 kilometer wide DMZ from the Southern half. There are only some rusted out yellow signs indicating the "MDL" ("Military Demarcation Line") along this line. The south-facing sides of these signs were in English and Korean, the north-facing sides in Chinese and Korean. Step beyond those, and you were in the North. ...So when you see photos of soldiers walking along a fence, that fence is the southern limit of the 4 KM-wide DMZ, rather than the actual line of demarcation between South and North Korea. One impression this video doesn't provide is the audial experience I remember: the propaganda speakers from each side, projecting music and spoken propaganda. (Usually pop music from the South Korean speakers, martial music from the North Korean ones.) It was made more eerie because the banks of speakers would be swivelled in various directions, and you could hear the music or words wafting in and out. Other than that, there wasn't much noise. There was very little traffic on the road (the main road from the gate to the Joint Security Area or "Panmunjom", the "truce village", which was a compound centered on three buildings [for conferences] which straddled the MDL). The JSA is the most tense place there -- the place most likely to erupt in violence (in case someone defected or one side were to trim a tree, whatever). ...Another eerie aspect was at night: most of the DMZ seemed to be in darkness. But, when you lifted your NOD (night observation device) up to your eyes, suddenly large swaths would be "lit up", because there were infrared lamps and spot lights, lighting up what each side thought was a critical part to have under constant observation, in a light wavelength invisible to the naked eye.
Thank you for sharing this! I think the scary part too is getting kidnapped by the DPRK soldiers.
@@anxioushellcat6075 frist go to Pyongyang, passe the official way you will have no problem
As a Korean living in Australia for freedom, thank you for your service. Do you think Korean war will resume and the border will stay the same or be different when the Korean war ends? 🤔
@anxioushellcat6075 Yeah, apparently it happened couple times long time ago in some other village on the upper Incheon areas, the island place at night. I don't know why they kidnapping fellow neutral villagers but it's sad
Incredible documentary. Thank you BBC
Awesome. Great job Jean and Hosu. You captured both the beauty of the village and the people living there.
the story of the man who hasn't heard from his brother since the war really breaks my heart. Cellphones and stuff weren't a thing yet so I can't imagine how hard it was to contact someone even BEFORE the war.
For a lot of Koreans, reunification is like the Fountain of Youth. It sounds nice on paper, but even if you keep looking, you will never find it.
it will lead to cultural clashes, solidarity taxes being sent up north, and lots of crime from people raised under communism who don't respect private property.
my question has alway been what does the reunification look like? would it be the total take over of the north and haveing a westen korea lead my the US
@@user-xz6gm3bq4s Koreans will decide for themselves. There will be no more need for American soldiers but Korea will now share a border with russia. So they will need a larger army. As for ideology, it will be South Korean ideas. They succeeded, the north failed. You gotta go with what works. Can't go half and half on successful and failed ideas.
@@steveerossaThen Unification ain't happening u less both sides get to keep their form of government and North Korea gets to keep it's nukes reunion will just be a delusional dream.
@@user-xz6gm3bq4sReunification is not happening North Korea would NEVER except South Korea form of government and vice versa.
I am a farmer living like them. Nowadays We farmers have serious noise issues of millitary drills and blsting sounds of big guns. Thanks god our villege is sourrounded by big mountains.
North Korea acting up again? How do you deal with it? I don’t think my anxiety could handle it.
@@Garbeaux. You misunderstood me. North korea's nuk missile is not targeting southkorea. They are targeting japan and USA. It's developed defensive purposes only.
@@Garbeaux. Millutary power? North korea no match for Southkorea. Without US and Japan, South Korea can handle North Korea easily. But Geopolitics matters. USA wants to crush China. They want Japanese Navy and South Korean Army. They want South Korea as a door to urasian field.
@@Garbeaux. Tension between S-N in Korean Peninsular is deliberately caused by Japan and USA. They even support millitary dictatorship decades long. Still boosting right-wing party in korea.
@@Garbeaux. In short, north korea don't make me anxious. US 🇺🇸 make me anxious. I hate American military presence in korea.
Touched video! Hope those farmers will live in peace and tranquility, thanks BBC to show us how they lives like.
The villagers looked happy and content in their simple life with friendly soldiers to protect them. 🙏🙏🙏
Really I didn’t see too much happiness
I love that the older generation were able to stay in their village with good protection. Heartbreaking necessity, but they all seem to have a very good relationship. I would love to visit. The village people seem to be lovely people.
wow proud of them
The man waiting for one day to reunite with his brother stuck in NK... This world is evil
Amazing documentary and reporter. God bless those people
Very special Elders ❤
This was an incredible insight into one of the most peculiar places in the world.
I love Korea 🇰🇷 💕 from Philippines 🇵🇭
When I was stationed in the Army in S. Korea the US Army still had a sector to patrol in the DMZ. We were stationed at Camp Liberty Bell (DMZ). We would patrol in the winter. The JSA stayed in the truce village.
Is this the truce village?
@@joshr8666 No this is a village where people live and farm.
@@anthonylagunas6737is this the one near to the observatory? If it is they have a small shop now and sell dried food to tourists + soybean ice cream obviously.
@@FakeGothBitch No it is farthing the DMZ.
Every South Korean I know doesn't even think about reunification, and when asked about it, they'll tell you it's not going to work. It's been 70 years. The countries couldn't be any more different, and they know what it would entail for South Korean society and economy. Reunification dreams will be gone with the generation that lived through the war.
@@simbaskiNorth Korea is not giving up there nukes or changing there government qnd South Korea is not changing their government eithier so reunification will not work.
Your first sentence "....it would work in 5 years...." and than came "however" . Reunification would lead to a downfall for southkorea! And there would still be division in there mind, culture and society.... @@simbaski
watch the battle of yultong..how the filipino soldier defend the south korea to north korea and china
Exactly, even if the DPRK fell China would step in again and install a new puppet government to keep a proxy in between South Korea (West) and it's own borders. It's that simple. The whole of North Korea is just a buffer zone for China.
@@eleven-ci1qj Overproud pinoy nanaman hayst. Wala rin sa topic.
The respect and appreciation the elders/ community members have for the ROK/US/UN soldiers shows how much the people in the community appreciate the fact that they can still live in their homes with some peace of mind because of the sacrifice these soldiers have made. I hope one day for peace on the Korean Peninsula.
I was stationed there when I was 19. The people who live in these villages are very sweet and appreciative. I'm sure we annoyed them at times, but they were quite gracious and kind.
Great documentary thanks for going to the effort of travelling there.
1:31 "What do you like about living here?" "We don't have to serve in the military." Can we take a minute to reflect on this answer from a child? Holy shit, that is sad.
There’s not really any perks for a kid lol, not like he has to pay rent anyways as a child. It would totally suck living in a remote village vs seoul
I live for these kind of documentaries. Thank you BBC. (shoutout from South Africa) ♥️
My heart breaks for these people and it breaks more for North Korean population. Lord have mercy on them.
For obvious reasons I wish the village of Taesung was exactly like my favourite village.
Fantastic short film. Really insightful.
Brother against brother..😢
Fixed upon by an authoritarian regime. What they’re experts in
This was interesting. Thank you for covering it. You learn something new every day!
The military are so respectful. God bless all of the world’s troops.
Amazing informative documentary. Thank you.
I feel for that Old Man who has never seen or heard from his mother since the war started😢
That’s so very sad 💔
Excellent documentary!!!
Ironically one of the safest towns in the world
God Bless the citizens living near the border as well as their soldiers. I salute to them. 😊... ❤
This why I'd always choose documentaries than movies. Real life this. Very sad what is happening to the Korean Peninsula. We pray for peace and better days. ❤️✌️
Full credit to the BBC for this documentary. Love this one but it should have been longer.
You should translate the interviews with Koreans, the documentary doesn’t make sense without knowing what they said because you also didn’t post a resume after the interviews…
Incredible report. Thank you BBC
Went to the DMZ last month and as a foreigner getting to know the history of Koreanand seeing even just a glimpse of life inside the DMZ amazed and saddened me at the same time.
The old lady says some funny things in Korean, the subtitles don't justify it, she has a perfect Seoul accent but it very informal, compared to the very formal BBC English, so the juxtaposition is hilarious
Incredible. Thanks to show it
kudos to the staff and whole personnel who is part of this documentary
This is great reporting
What a beautiful village I hope one day North and South reunite each other love from 🇵🇭
i served at kunsan airbase for the u.s airforce and never even heard about this! great documentary bbc
Fascinating!
I like the irony of it being named "demilitarized zone" while yet being one of the most militarized borders in the world...
I’ve been there. It’s actually quite easy to drive a car in these gray areas
3 positives about this border village. Free rent. No taxes to pay. Don't have to serve in military. That's awesome
Perfect subtitles
Decent. A lot of things said were skipped over, and a few things translated were off a bit.
@@mgtowski395p sure they’re being sarcastic, considering the instances of missing subtitles
I Wish Both Korea Can Reunite Peaceful 🇰🇵🇰🇷
Thank you so much for this. I’m an American whose daughter dreams to teach in S Korea. I’ve always been concerned about the conflict, and more so in the last few years as Kim threatens with missiles. These people are so lovely and live on hope for the future. They are willing to show that with their actions.
Interesting documentary . By the way that veg looks amazing.
I feel so bad for the citizens there not just bc of the border but their sad stories 😢
To think those villagers are just few meters away from living as a Kim Jong Un's slaves. They are really blessed.
I mean! What a blessing in disguise! God saved them
Don’t make it seem to be that bad I’m sure they’re living their best life not like South Koreans who got the highest rate of suicideees and all that
At around 5:42 in the bottom right hand you can see what looks like a car driving down the road. It might not be a village like Taesung, but it's definitely occupied by somebody.
bravo~! BBC
When I was at South Korea in 1951 to 1953 I was an American soldier fought North Korea many of our troops died or have feet frozen had to amputate by American doctors it's very tragic.
Thank you for your sacrifice sir!
RESPECT to the villagers of Taeseong for continuing to stay in a dangerous village. 🙇♂️
They don't have to pay taxes. That alone is amazing.
Thanks for skipping subtitles for that sweet old lady…. Anyone know what she was saying? Because BBC seemingly ignored to translate for us.
3:17 "Even after the ceasefire, there was no car (public transit). It used to be once in a week, then once in three days, and now, it's three times a day." 3:42 "It would be better to get my hair done once a month, but... because it's cumbersome." Also: 4:45 - the interpreter says "I like you very much, too!" after the man says "USA number one!" 4:53 - I can't hear what the lady says but the soldier replies "thank you" in Korean. 12:50 - the woman says "yeah, mom doesn't work today" out of context.
I actually saw that village two weeks ago while touring the DMZ. They’re close enough to be able to hear North Korea
Missing captions?
"Enemy line" is misleading. North Korea says its enemy is USA not the South koreans. USA presence is the bone of contention
Same in the Philippines, China enemy is USA and and now there are USA Military Camps in different parts of the Philippines
Fascinating and a bit depressing at the same time.
Interesting video.
Your woman making the acorn jelly is living her best life 😂
fascinating! never thought there's a village exist in the border thanks BBC
"Abandoned village.. no one living there.." BUT there is literally someone cycling in the village at 5:44 lmao
whats also keeping a lot of the older and possibly younger koreans in the village is the fact that you do not need to pay taxes on income when living in that place
💀 was looking for this comment
First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out-because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out-because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out-because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me-and there was no one left to speak for me. -Martin Niemöller This quote is attributed to the prominent German pastor Martin Niemöller. It is sometimes mistakenly referred to as a poem. After World War II, Niemöller openly spoke about his own early complicity in Nazism and his eventual change of heart. His powerful words about guilt and responsibility still resonate today.
Well done. The DMZ is one of the most surrealistic places on the planet, and one gains a sense of that from this video.
as a korean, reunification is not happening anytime soon or possibly... never? there's way too much financial and political gain from the division of korea by china, US, japan and even the south korean far-right . it's pathetic and sad.
The problem is nobody wants a fully _divided_ Korea as well. To achieve that, the two Koreas have to recognise each other, define an official border and possibly build diplomatic missions. That is certainly not going to happen either, especially North Korea won't agree with that.
Reunification could also burden sk financialy. And the division in peoples mind doesn't change that easily. Germany went through it and even after 30 years there is still a division.
극우 세력이 아닌 극좌 세력이 중국의 편임을 전국민이 안다
5:29 And lots of mines.
Wow, I never this about a village this close to North Korea. I just watched a video about how hard it is to leave North Korea from earlier years to now. Thank you for the film.
The only village in SK enjoying a high standard of living
That’s what I was saying 🫶🇰🇵
Im pretty sure this is reupload and not new video..
Great documentary. Thank you for showing us what it's like in the Korean borders.
i pray that these residents remain safe during the impending war. 😢
May there never be war there again
@@Lori_L true 😢 but war is inevitable in their case.
As a Korean, I can assure you that the war is not coming.
there's not going to be any war, a war will result in all the north korean soldiers defecting and jong un left to fend for himself
2:10 They live like kings compared to just over the border, what a tragedy.
They can still access to all the resources in the South Korea, even doctors regularly visit that village
you hear that? granny says taesong village acorn jelly is the best
9:37 good boy
North Korea watching them farm with the alien like machine 👁️👄👁️
Patrolled near there in 1988,those people are supposed to be wearing a certain colored hat for each day,they can’t go out at night and must follow a strict daily routine. They of course get paid extremely well for living there. It’s foggy there at night and it gives it a spooky vibe. DMZ duty was awesome,we carried live ammo,203 rounds,claymores,smoke,flares and other items. HHC 1/5 infantry,camp Howze.
💔+❤ warming.. Reunification aside: presence is hugely symbolic of 🇰🇷will & strength to LIVE! Despite/in spite of CRAZY! 'we're still here' has endless meanings & value.
A lot of blue roofs
Who can I reach out to for an exchange project in this village???
I'd move there
Still, it is on the best side.
This is such a surreal and interesting place. I knew N. Korea had their "pseudo village" but did not know S. Korea had this "village of hope" so to speak.
no rent or tax and and you get to live off the land that sounds alright to me
I know right!
I should get some acres in this village, I'd relocate to stay in it🤓