Heinz-Murray 2E.book

Chapter 9 Korea 367

While the early postwar years saw prosperity in the north and corruption

and dysfunction in the south, these fortunes reversed, and the economy in the

north stalled, while South Korea industrialized under martial law and corpo-

ratist policies during the 1960s and 1970s. In North Korea, the Kim dynasty

ruled in a succession of three dictatorial leaders up until the time of writing,

while popular protest in South Korea led to the gradual democratization of the

political process in the 1980s and 1990s. The demilitarized zone (DMZ)

divides the two Koreas, with both sides highly fortified in an enduring stale-

mate. At the present moment, South Korea and North Korea experience fluc-

tuations in their relationship that are sometimes influenced by regional powers

like Japan, China, Russia, and the global influence of the United States. Occa-

sional provocations and incidents draw the world’s attention to the divided

peninsula. China remains North Korea’s only powerful ally, and their long

shared border means that Beijing favors stability and the status quo over any

In January of 1951, six months after the outbreak of the Korean War, refugees file through
the snow near what is today Gangneung, South Korea.