다음주 이산가족 상봉... 68년만의 첫 상봉, 총 11시간 주어진다<br /><br /> Next week, at Mount Kumgang resort, the two Koreas will finally hold a long overdue reunion for families separated by a war that divided a nation. <br />Oh Jung-hee starts us off with a brief outline of what to expect... and the latest efforts by the two sides to make sure everything goes smooth for the emotional gathering. <br /> Next Monday, the two Koreas will start their first family reunions in three years... with the mood in Seoul and Pyongyang in full support of cooperation.<br />The reunions are for families that were torn apart by the Korean War.<br />Seoul and Pyongyang agreed to hold them when officials met in June for Red Cross talks,... and they'll be held for a week at North Korea's Mount Kumgang resort.<br /> The reunions are held in two rounds -- the first when people chosen by South Korea meet their relatives from the North,... and the second when those chosen by North Korea meet their relatives from the South.<br />Seoul is sending 89 people, each of whom gets to take a relative with them as a chaperone.<br />On Sunday, ahead of their trip, the South Koreans will all gather in the eastern city of Sokcho,... where they'll be told about the do's and don'ts while they're in the North.<br /> After spending the night in Sokcho, they'll cross the border on Monday morning.<br />For three days at North Korea's Mount Kumgang, they'll have 11 hours, divided up into six sessions, to spend time with their long lost relatives -- having meals together and chatting with each other... either in a public meeting room or in their private rooms.<br />And their tearful reunions will come to a close on Wednesday.<br /> The same schedule will repeat once more for the next four days -- this time, for the 83 people Pyongyang has chosen to meet their relatives from the South.<br />The week-long family reunions will come to an end on Sunday, August 26th.<br /><br /> Currently, an advance team from South Korea is at the Mount Kumgang resort working with the North Korean authorities to fine-tune the details of the reunion schedule so as to minimize the inconvenience for the participants -- most of whom are in their 80s and 90s and have difficulty moving.<br /> Seoul says it's bringing a lot more support staff than it did for previous reunions and will be caring most of all for the participants' health and safety -- already 9 families have given up participating in the reunions... due to health problems.<br />Oh Jung-hee, Arirang News. <br />
