Trip to the DMZ: A Photo Essay (Part III)

Trip to the DMZ: A Photo Essay (Part III)

JSA Map

Mary Grace Maquiniana with Sergeant Juarez in front of Observation Post no. 5

(Photo courtesy of Mary Grace Maquiniana)

This marker stands at Observation Point 5 instead of the actual site of the Military Armistice Agreement principally because the actual site is located inside North Korean territory.
(Photo courtesy of Mary Grace Maquiniana)

Checkpoint 3 is the UN Command outpost that guards the "Bridge of No Return". It is one of the most strategic locations at the Joint Security Area (JSA). As can be seen on the map above, CP 3 is surrounded by North Korean outposts 4, 5 and 8. The nearest friendly outpost is Observation Point 5 and Checkpoint 4, which, as can be seen from the map above, is quite a distance from Checkpoint 3.

(Photo courtesy of Emerald Anne Jorda)

 The "Bridge of No Return" is one of the few access points from North to South Korea. In the past, this is where Prisoners of War (POWs) or returning citizens passed through on their way back home.

(Photo courtesy of Emerald Anne Jorda)

 A huge poplar tree (estimated at 100 feet tall) that affected the visibility between Checkpoint 3, Checkpoint 4 and Observation Point 5 was the cause of the infamous Axe Murder Incident in 1976. 

Site of the contested poplar tree and the infamous Axe Murder Incident.

On August 18, 1976, a group of five Korean Service Corps (KSC) personnel escorted by a UN Command security team composed of three Joint Security Force (JSF) officers and 11 enlisted men were tasked to prune and trim the said tree. The trimming operations had been scheduled 7 days before but could not be carried out because of heavy rains. In the midst of the operation, they were accosted by a group of KPA soldiers who demanded that the trimming be stopped, which the JSF Commander Captain Arthur Bonifas ignored. The KPA officer proceeded to call for reinforcements and demanded anew that the trimming be stopped. After Captain Bonifas ignored the KPA officer a second time, the latter ordered his men to attack. The KPA used the axes dropped by the KSC men to attack Captain Bonifas and his men. Bonifas died instantly. First Lieutenant Mark Barrett was likewise found to have been axed to death. All but one of the 11 enlisted men were also injured in the attack.

(Photo courtesy of Emerald Anne Jorda)

A North Korean Outpost. 

Another, albeit closer, North Korean Outpost.

A view of Checkpoint 3 from Observation Point 5.

Due to the advent of advanced technology, there is no longer any need to post soldiers at Checkpoint 3.

The Military Line of Demarcation is marked by small white poles such as this.

More of the white poles that mark the Military Line of Demarcation. Note that there are no more barbed wires connecting the white poles