The Ministry of Unification said the North approved the movement of personnel and goods through the Kaesong Industrial District Management Committee (KIDMAC) earlier in the day. Seoul has been contacting the KIDMAC, an office jointly staffed by South and North Korea, to get confirmation for the daily movement of workers over the demilitarized zone (DMZ) that separates the two Koreas. In the past, communication was handled through a military hotline, but the North cut off the hotline on Wednesday.
"The North gave its approval and 352 South Koreans crossed over the DMZ at 8:30 a.m.," a ministry source said. The official said 853 people are expected to head for Kaesong within the day and 355 are scheduled to return.
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Many workers admitted they are more worried than usual in light of heightened tensions caused by the North's detonation of its third nuclear device on Feb. 12 and the ongoing Foal Eagle annual joint military exercises conducted by Seoul and Washington.
"The greatest concern is about being detained in the North if Pyongyang really opts to close the industrial complex," one worker who in employed at a textile firm said. Another said if Kaesong is closed, it can seriously cripple the company he works for and endanger the livelihood of the South Korean employees.
Pyongyang, meanwhile, citing provocations from the South and efforts to "tarnish the image of the DPRK," warned Saturday that it may shut down the industrial complex. The DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the North's official name.
South Korea has repeatedly made clear it does not plan to take action against the complex even as it works with other countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang for its latest nuclear test that has been condemned by the United Nations. It has urged the North to carefully consider any action that can jeopardize operations that not only affect South Korean companies but North Korean workers as well.
Kaesong provides the impoverished country with US$87 million in cash earnings each year, mainly through wages of workers, and may provide support for more than 250,000 people comprising workers and their family members.
The complex remains the only economic link between the two Koreas, after Seoul banned all other cooperative tie-ups following the sinking of one of its warships by a North Korean torpedo in March 2010.
The complex is considered the crowning achievement of the 2000 inter-Korean summit meeting between late South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-il. There are currently 123 South Korean companies operating at Kaesong. These firms employ about 800 South Korean workers and more than 53,000 North Korean laborers to make various goods.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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