Long before Travis King, Panmunjom tours had a history of death and defections



Analysis Long before Travis King, Panmunjom tours had a history of death and defections Both North Korea and UN Command use tours to promote their version of history, but sometimes things don’t go to plan James Fretwell August 10, 2023 SHARE COPY LINK FACEBOOK X LINKEDIN MASTODON The North Korean side of Panmunjom \| Image: Eric Lafforgue (April 21, 2008) Death, defection and all for a reasonable price: Panmunjom tours have been the subject of scrutiny since American soldier Travis King crossed into North Korea, but history shows that his daring dash into the DPRK was far from the first incident during a visit to the sensitive border area. Visitors have been joining tours to the Joint Security Area (JSA) since just after the Korean War, and the number of people to go from each side has even been a point of pride in inter-Korean ideological competition. Death, defection and all for a reasonable price: Panmunjom tours have been the subject of scrutiny since American soldier Travis King crossed into North Korea, but history shows that his daring dash into the DPRK was far from the first incident during a visit to the sensitive border area. Visitors have been joining tours to the Joint Security Area (JSA) since just after the Korean War, and the number of people to go from each side has even been a point of pride in inter-Korean ideological competition. Try unlimited access Only $1 for four weeks Unlimited access to all of NK News: reporting, investigations, analysis Year-one discount if you continue past $1 trial period The NK News Daily Update, an email newsletter to keep you in the loop Searchable archive of all content, photo galleries, special columns Contact NK News reporters with tips or requests for reporting Get unlimited access to all NK News content, including original reporting, investigations, and analyses by our team of DPRK experts. Subscribe now All major cards accepted. No commitments – you can cancel any time. © Korea Risk Group. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written permission from Korea Risk Group. Get the Daily Update Start your day with the North Korea stories that matter most – as selected by And how should we address you in correspondence? One more step! Please check your inbox, for an email we just sent you, and click on the confirmation message in it to get subscribed to our Daily News Update. Trending

Analysis

Long before Travis King, Panmunjom tours had a history of death and defections

Both North Korea and UN Command use tours to promote their version of history, but sometimes things don’t go to plan

James Fretwell August 10, 2023

Long before Travis King, Panmunjom tours had a history of death and defections

The North Korean side of Panmunjom | Image: Eric Lafforgue (April 21, 2008)

Death, defection and all for a reasonable price: Panmunjom tours have been the subject of scrutiny since American soldier Travis King crossed into North Korea, but history shows that his daring dash into the DPRK was far from the first incident during a visit to the sensitive border area.

Visitors have been joining tours to the Joint Security Area (JSA) since just after the Korean War, and the number of people to go from each side has even been a point of pride in inter-Korean ideological competition.

Try unlimited access
Only $1 for four weeks

Unlimited access to all of NK News: reporting, investigations, analysis
Year-one discount if you continue past $1 trial period
The NK News Daily Update, an email newsletter to keep you in the loop
Searchable archive of all content, photo galleries, special columns
Contact NK News reporters with tips or requests for reporting

Get unlimited access to all NK News content, including original reporting, investigations, and analyses by our team of DPRK experts.

Subscribe now

All major cards accepted. No commitments – you can cancel any time.

Long before Travis King, Panmunjom tours had a history of death and defections

Try unlimited accessOnly $1 for four weeks

Start your day with the North Korea stories that matter most –

as selected by <img width="226" height="50" class="logo" src="https://www.nknews.org/wp-content/themes/nknews/images/header-logo.png" alt="NK News Logo">

One more step!

Trending

Recent Stories

About the Author

James Fretwell

Try unlimited access
Only $1 for four weeks

Start your day with
the North Korea stories that matter most –

as selected by