Union Penalized Over Act in North

In August, a group of labor unionists were reportedly punished for "placing floral tributes at the National Cemetery of North Korea during a visit to Pyongyang," according to Joongang IIbo.

The cemetery had been described as "the graves of North Korean war criminals", and the National Intelligence Service was said to be investigating if the union members had violated South Korea's much feared National Security Law.

Maybe the report was vague, or perhaps I am too much of an outsider to understand the nuances. But I am not sure if the unionists were punished because they placed "floral tributes", or because they visited the Revolutionary Patriots' Tomb without prior permission from the proper authorities.

I am puzzled because "placing floral tributes" itself doesn't seem like an act that would jeopardize national security. Furthermore, there is also the question of having to go with the flow, so to speak, when one is in a foreign country - (a bit ironic, but yes, it's still "foreign" when South Koreans visit the North).

I mean, when I was in North Korea in 2002, I had to bow several times (grudgingly, of course) to several statues of Father and Son, simply because I was a guest in a foreign land, and because the host expected us to. So that they can film us, put us on national television and tell their people that "look, foreigners are in awe of the Great Leader and the Dear Leader". But the point is, sometimes we have to do things to get along with, or at least not to offend the host. Or in my case, to remain cordial with my guide (whom I actually quite liked), and get my job done.

I suppose the reason why the unionists were punished was because they went beyond just "playing along" with the host. And I guess that there are certain standards and clear-cut rules regarding inter-Korean visits, and that what the unionists had done was a clear and outright violation of one of the rules.

As for the question of laying "floral tributes" at a cemetery said to be "the graves of North Korean war criminals", it is just a sad state of affair. So long as the two Koreas remain divided, and so long as the rewriting of history had not entered a final stage (assuming such a stage is attainable), relations between the two divided nations will always remain difficult and contentious.

Or to quote a Korean professor, it is a question of "interpreting the data to construct a coherent storyline", given that "the national narrative is still taking place".