Trade links and remembering a forgotten war

A TV3 news team travelled to South Korea in April 2010 to report on the 60th anniversary of the Korean War and also to do a number of other stories that reflect New Zealand’s growing links with this important North Asian economy.

The TV3 crew which visited Busan, Kap’yong and the Han River estuary, consisted of reporter and presenter Mike McRoberts, director Keith Slater and camera operator Cushla Lewis.  The team travelled to Busan, Kap’yong and the Han River estuary area.

The visit had two purposes, to record two or three television stories about New Zealand’s contribution to the Korean War (1950-53), and also to report on technology and trade-related issues relevant to New Zealand audiences.

One of the items about the Korean War focused on the Battle of Kap’yong. The report was broadcast on Friday April 23, almost 59 years to the day to the start of the battle between Chinese and North Korean soldiers on one side, and South Korean and United Nations troops on the other.

The Battle of Kap’yong was a critical engagement. The Chinese began a major offensive down the Kap’yong valley on April 22, 1951. They forced the withdrawal of a South Korean division and almost overran three Commonwealth regiments. The defensive fire from the New Zealand 16th Regiment of artillery was crucial in allowing the Commonwealth forces to make an orderly withdrawal and to form a defensive line to halt the Chinese advance.

The TV3 report contained images of the battleground and an interview with Morrie Gasson who fought in the battle of Kap’yong as well as a surviving British officer.

A second item covered the role played by the Royal New Zealand Navy. New Zealand frigates were sent to Korea in 1950 at the start of the conflict. This report was broadcast on TV3 in the news bulletin on April 24, the day before Anzac Day in New Zealand. The item detailed the exploits of the frigates in and around the Han River estuary.  It included an interview with Peter Hunter, a seaman on board the frigate HMNZS Kaniere.

A third item looked at the day to day life of those who volunteered to serve in the Royal New Zealand Army’s 16th Regiment. Mike McRoberts talked to two veterans who outlined the dangers and conditions of fighting in the Korean War. The item explained and discussed the hardships of the weather and terrain. It also showed film taken of the regiment at the time. This item was broadcast in the 3 News bulletin on Anzac Day.

The TV3 team also compiled three news items on trade and business. Ninety percent of homes in South Korea have a broadband connection. One item looked at the phenomenal standard of broadband in the North Asian country and reported on New Zealand’s plans to achieve similar speeds. It contained interviews with leading South Korean engineers who designed and installed Korea’s ultra fast broadband system. The TV3 crew also interviewed the Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Steven Joyce, about New Zealand’s broadband future.

The assignment also reported on the benefits of a free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and New Zealand. It focused on existing trade between the two countries and looked at what the future could be. The item showed the extent and nature of Korean industry, and sought to explain how a country that was war torn just 60 years ago has become one of the world’s leading economies. It contained an interview with South Korea’s lead negotiator for the FTA and an interview with the Minister of Trade, Tim Groser.

Another story was about the Greater Wellington Regional Council’s plans to buy up to 70 new rail units to replace their existing aged fleet of train carriages. The deal is worth a quarter of a billion dollars. The news team looked at where they are being built, showed the technology being used and benefits they will bring to Wellington commuters. The deal is an example of the trade between South Korea and New Zealand. The crew talked to those who are building the units at the Rotem factory in Changwon and saw the first finished unit.

The South Korea project allowed 3 News to inform a significant number of New Zealanders of the co-operation between New Zealand and Korea during the Korean War; it also aimed to inform them of the growing economic and cultural ties between the two countries. 

The TV3 news assignment was made possible with the support of the Asia:NZ media programme and the Republic of Korea’s Minister of Patriots and Veterans Affairs.