Kim Jung-ho prepared a survival kit in his own home in South Korea to be ready if war with North Korea breaks out.
The 30-year-old thinks this will help him survive the first 72 hours should the unthinkable happen. In addition to water and emergency food, such as dehydrated cooked rice, he also set aside a map and compass for a scenario in which mobile phone networks and public transport stop working.
He went all out to include a protective vest and a gas mask. The military may not have enough protective equipment, he argues, so it’s better for him to be prepared, especially as one of 3.1 million reservists.
“I live in the heart of Seoul. The idea that everything could disappear with just one missile terrifies me,” says the graduate student.
The South Korean capital is about 50 kilometers from the demilitarized zone established in 1953, when the Korean War armistice agreement was signed.
But tension on the Korean Peninsula has been rising. North Korea, which has nuclear weapons, has carried out four ballistic missile tests so far this year.
In April, it said it had successfully tested a new solid-fuel hypersonic missile that could reach Guam, a U.S. island territory in Micronesia.
About 900 people have joined at least four grooming groups on Kakao, South Korea’s most popular messaging app.
Separately, a preparatory community called “The Survival School – Daum Café”, which has been operating since 2010, has more than 25,000 members.
The recent increase in the number of preppers (something like “preparadores” in Portuguese) highlights growing anxiety about inter-Korean relations as the North becomes more aggressive.
In January, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un classified the South as his number one enemy, declaring that the peaceful reunification of the two Koreas had become impossible.
It was an “unprecedented” move, says Nam Sung-wook, a professor of political economy at Korea University. It means that the North could resort to using nuclear weapons against the South, since it no longer sees the South as its ethnic kin.
More than 75% of respondents said they were anxious about the security situation, according to a survey by the KBS Public Media Research Institute. This rate grew 19 percentage points compared to 2021, when the survey was carried out for the first time.
Increased exposure to global conflicts such as the Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas wars has also made young Koreans more attuned to growing geopolitical risk, says Woo Seong-yeop, administrator of “The Survival School – Daum Café” group.
One of the chat groups mentioned above was created when the war in Ukraine began. Membership increased tenfold to 500 in two years.
“I have never thought of preparing for a war in my life. But look around the world now. Several wars are already underway,” says personal trainer Park Hwi bin, who has also completed a CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) training course. last year.
Some members want to leave the country before any conflict with the North occurs. Learning languages, saving money and acquiring skills is part of your strategy to guarantee residence in countries considered safer.
“I heard that I can get permanent residency in Paraguay for around 10 million won (R$37,500),” wrote one member.
Other prepper who requested anonymity says he is building a bunker under his two-story house in Hwaseong City. Reinforced with thick concrete, the bunker will be equipped with power generators and cooking equipment so it can be used as long-term shelter for his family, including his six-year-old son.
He bought the land two years ago. It is far from the US military base in Pyeongtaek – which could become a bombing target in a worst-case scenario.
Most Koreans consider ‘preppers’ overly sensitive, and even Kim’s mother scolded him for spending “unnecessary money” on survival kits.
“Even though relations between North and South Korea are not good nowadays, I have never worried about war and am just living my life as usual,” Lee Young-ah, a 28-year-old trader, told BBC.
South Korea has become a prosperous and vibrant democracy, although the two Koreas are still technically at war.
Decades of peace have made most South Koreans “apathetic to war” and this can lead to “complacency”, Woo says.
He thinks that public opinion regarding preppers is gradually changing due to growing geopolitical tension.
Kim defends herself. “When you board a plane, don’t they provide you with safety equipment? Buying this safety equipment is like putting on a seat belt.”
It’s like buying insurance, argues Park. But, as with other forms of insurance, no one actually wants to have to use it.
