Separated Families, Will the Path to Visit North Korean Hometowns Open Through Chinese Travel Agencies?

Government Reviews Plan to Approve Visits to North Korea Upon Receipt of North Korean Visa

President Moon Jae-in (right) and Kim Jong-un, Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of North Korea

The path is expected to open for separated families to visit their hometowns in North Korea through Chinese travel agencies. The government is positively considering a plan to grant approval for visits to North Korea as long as a North Korean visa is issued, even without an official invitation letter from North Korean authorities.

On the 10th, an official from the Ministry of Unification stated, "If North Korea issues a visa (to our citizens), that itself guarantees personal safety," adding, "We are reviewing a plan to approve visits to North Korea based solely on a North Korean visa, even without an invitation letter from the North." The government has maintained that issues of personal safety and protection must be resolved first, including the possibility of individual tourism to Kumgangsan.

Koreans must obtain approval from the Ministry of Unification to visit North Korea, and an invitation letter is required in this process. According to Article 12, Paragraph 2 of the Enforcement Decree of the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act, "Documents confirming the invitation intention from North Korean authorities or organizations" are necessary for visit approval. This provision has acted as a barrier to South Koreans visiting North Korea. For ordinary citizens without contact channels with the North, requesting an invitation letter itself is a difficult task.

If visits become possible with only a visa, traveling to North Korea through Chinese travel agencies is expected to become easier. In particular, visits by separated families to their hometowns in North Korea are anticipated. Chinese travel agencies that have been selling North Korea travel packages possess human and material networks between North Korea and China.

The Ministry of Unification has emphasized "creative solutions" considering the urgency of resolving the separated families issue. From this year, the Ministry established the "3rd Basic Plan for Promoting Inter-Korean Separated Families Exchange," to be implemented over three years until 2022, on December 31 last year. The Ministry stated, "We will promote diversification and regularization of separated families exchanges," and "We will consider new approaches such as hometown visits."

The easing of visit approval requirements is also expected to positively impact the promotion of tourism cooperation between the two Koreas. On the 9th, Minister of Unification Kim Yeon-chul said at the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee plenary meeting, "Individual tourism does not fall under UN sanctions against North Korea," adding, "Citizens of China, Australia, and New Zealand are already touring Kumgangsan."

North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un, while ordering the dismantling of South Korean facilities in Kumgangsan last October, also stated, "If South Korean compatriots come, they will be welcomed anytime." President Moon Jae-in said in his New Year's address on the 7th, "There is great regret that we could not achieve greater progress in inter-Korean cooperation over the past year," and "We will continue efforts to resume operations of the Kaesong Industrial Complex and Kumgangsan tourism."

However, there are criticisms that granting visit approvals without concrete guarantees of personal safety from the North may indicate that the government is neglecting its duty to protect its citizens.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.