'40% of youngsters would flee from war'

By Bae Ji-sook

Staff reporter

About four out of every 10 youngsters here said they would seek refuge further south from the border if a second Korean war broke out, a survey showed Wednesday. Only 15.5 percent said they would join the army to fight.

The Korea Institute for Defense Analyses asked a total of 1,000 males and females aged between 15 and 60 last month what their reaction toward a possible war on the Korean peninsula would be, and detected sharp distinctions between different age brackets.

The younger generation, aged 15 to 29, mostly said they were willing to support the army but would not participate in the war.

They said they would move to other parts of the country or even overseas to escape the war. Only 15.5 percent of teenagers and 27 percent of 20-somethings said they would enlist in the military to fight.

They were also lukewarm toward unification through war. Nearly 60 percent of teens and 72.3 percent of those in their 20s said the South should absorb the North even if it involves a long war.

The portion rose to 76.3 percent among 30-somethings, 82.5 percent for those in their 40s and 85.8 percent among 50-somethings.

Many young people said tales or episodes about the Korean War do not move them, but older respondents said the stories inspired them.

Kim Kwang-shik, who led the research, said, "Young people are less passionate about national security and their contribution to the nation. The difference of perceptions could become a possible conflict over the country's security agenda."

bjs@koreatimes.co.kr