Gyeonggi-do Conducts First Comprehensive Survey of the 70-Year Forbidden Land 'DMZ'

[Asia Economy (Uijeongbu) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province is joining hands with the Cultural Heritage Administration and Gangwon Province to launch a survey on cultural and natural heritage to promote the demilitarized zone (DMZ) as a peace zone, as agreed upon in the April 27 Panmunjom Declaration between South and North Korea.

This survey is a follow-up measure to the "DMZ-related Gyeonggi Province-Cultural Heritage Administration-Gangwon Province Memorandum of Understanding" signed on July 11 last year.

The first survey will be conducted from the 26th to the 29th of this month in Daeseong-dong Village, Paju, the only village located within the DMZ.

The survey is significant as it represents the first comprehensive investigation of cultural and natural heritage across the entire DMZ, which has remained an unknown land for over 70 years since the division.

The survey will involve 55 researchers specializing in cultural, natural, and world heritage from organizations including the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation, Paju City, the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage under the Cultural Heritage Administration, the Gangwon Cultural Heritage Research Institute, and Goseong County.

Depending on the type of individual targets and the survey schedule, about 20 people will participate in each survey session.

The survey team will hold a launch ceremony at 10 a.m. on the 26th at the Paju Traditional Architecture Repair Technology Promotion Foundation, where they will share the survey plan, precautions, and access procedures.

The main survey targets include Daeseong-dong Village in Paju, the Panmunjom JSA (Joint Security Area), Taebong Cheorwon Fortress, the northeasternmost Goseong Guard Post (GP), as well as about 40 locations including the Daemamsan and Daewoo Mountain Natural Protection Areas, and the Geonbongsan and Hyangrobong Natural Protection Areas.

This survey is expected to provide a new opportunity to recognize the cultural and natural heritage within the DMZ, which has been neglected until now.

At Daeseong-dong Freedom Village, the first survey site, the survey will examine the cultural landscape shaped by the division, reflecting the lives of residents living within the DMZ.

Additionally, archaeological traces around the village, including 'Taeseong (台城)' located to the west of the village, will be explored, providing a chance to verify information that had previously only been inferred from historical documents.

A provincial official explained, "Through the joint survey to be conducted over the next year, we aim to discover the value of the DMZ as a symbolic space for national reconciliation and peace, and to use the findings as foundational data for various efforts to promote the DMZ as a peace zone."

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