As a stay-or-go dilemma faces many Americans in South Korea -- the target
of escalating threats from the North -- most here appear to believe that danger
is exaggerated.
"I'm not worried at all, nobody here seems to be concerned about it," said John
Franks, 26, who is from New Jersey and has taught English in Seoul for the past
year.
North Korean leader "Kim (Jong Un) is making bellicose statements to solidify
his own power," Franks said. "It's only a year since Kim formally assumed
office, and one way to get everyone on (his) side is to stir up a lot of noise."
Still, not everyone has stayed put as North Korea has increased its threatening
rhetoric in the past several weeks, including threats to turn Seoul into a "sea
of fire."
One U.S. student left Seoul last week to return to Redding, Calif., two months
before her class completed a year's study program in the South Korean capital.
"She was worried about the situation, but the rest of the 50 international
students still remain," said classmate Hailey Atkins, 19, also from Redding,
Calif.
Atkins isn't afraid. "I'm not worried," she said Saturday. "Every day I'm
surrounded by Korean friends, and there is no atmosphere of worry. They make
jokes about the military threat. My parents (in the USA) are very, very worried.
I say, 'I know,' and I tell them it's so calm here."
The annual Yeouido Spring Flower Festival in central Seoul reflected the calm
Saturday as thousands of residents converged on the city's mini-Manhattan for
snacks, songs, exercise and a look at the emerging cherry blossoms on more than
1,000 cherry trees.
Jackie Oh and Hey Lee, both 25, came to learn rollerblading on the wide expanse
of Yeouido Park. Like many South Koreans, the couple said they were not worried
about the threats of war from Kim Jong Un.
"In the beginning, in February and March, I used to stay at home more," said
Hey, a designer. "The first time he threatened us, we thought it's dangerous,
but now, several times later, we don't think it's serious anymore. "
Nam Tae Hyun, 27, a South Korean army reservist, is confident he won't be called
up to fight. "We can conquer them," he said. "Kim Jong Un is childish and lacks
wisdom, so he's more dangerous (than his father and grandfather), but still no
need to worry. North Korea is not our partner to fight with; it's far inferior
to South Korea."
Pressure from family in Ohio has weighed on Seth Hammontree, who runs a
non-profit group in Seoul for Korean adoptees worldwide, especially for those
like himself who have returned to the land of their birth.
"I assured them everything's OK," he said. "It's not crippling the city; there's
no mass panic. It's of concern but not changing people's lives."
As a former U.S. Navy lieutenant, Hammontree is watching the North's moves
closely. "What's different this time is their movement of artillery, and that
before they did not talk so much about nuclear weapons, so it needs to be taken
more seriously," he said, "but I don't think they will launch a ballistic
missile into Seoul or South Korea, as that would be the end of North Korea."
To curb public worries, South Korea's Ministry of National Defense has in recent
weeks run information videos on screens inside subway cars on Seoul's metro. The
message is clear: Don't worry; we will respond with several rounds of
retaliation to any North Korean attack.
Koo Jang Hoe, 67, an online entrepreneur, was pleased by Secretary of State John
Kerry's remarks Friday in Seoul affirming the U.S.-South Korean alliance. "There
will not be war, but Kim Jong Un is more dangerous than his predecessors, and we
cannot predict what he will do," he said.
Koo's older brother Koo Jung Hoe was kidnapped by North Korean soldiers at the
start of the Korean War in 1950. He was never seen again. "My mother died of
heartbreak because of this," he said. "We must not repeat the same kind of
family tragedy."
Jackie Oh, left, and Hey Lee, both 25, learn to rollerblade Saturday at the
Yeouido Spring Flower Festival in Seoul. The South Koreans at first were worried
about Kim Jong Un's threats, "but now, several times later, we don't think it's
serious anymore," Hey says. Some Americans in the region think otherwise and
have already packed up and left.
