the hostages are home

The Korean hostages are now home from Afghanistan, for which I'm thankful. Based on this recent Marmot's Hole post, I gather we now know the answer to the question of whether they should be classified as "aid workers" or "missionaries." That post also confirms my suspicion that Koreans will be heading back to Afghanistan, and that this isn't over.

If missionaries-- truly dedicated missionaries-- are prepared to go abroad even at the risk of their own lives, I think they need to sign some sort of "do not rescue" waiver so that the government doesn't have to concern itself with their safety. This would be in the same spirit as other religious exemptions, such as those we find in America regarding taxation. I hope that Korean mission organizers will, in the future, be more scrupulous and proactive in informing their charges of the very real risks involved in their line of work.

Of course, I'd still love to see somebody's special forces go into those mountains and scour out every last vestige of the Taliban, but I know that's a pipe dream.




UPDATE: Two Chosun Ilbo articles of possible interest to you are here and here. I was much more interested in the second than in the first: the second article makes some rather provocative claims, only one of which the article bothers to substantiate. I have a feeling the unsubstantiated claims contain at least a grain of truth, but I would have liked to see the evidence in the article itself.


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