An 81-year-old woman, the only resident of a desolate island in international conflict

SEOUL: The South Koreans call them Dokdo. The Japanese, Takeshima. The two small rocky islands are at the center of an international conflict between Seoul and Tokyo, but what distinguishes them is not the territorial controversy nor the strategic importance, but their population, reduced to a single inhabitant: a woman of 81 years old. years

Kim Sin-yeol, originally from Jeju Island, South Korea, has been living in the Dokdo Islands since 1991, when she was settled with her husband who died last October.

The waters of these disputed islands constitute a rich fishing territory and also shelter a reserve of natural gas. In the 1950s, South Korea took control of the place and installed armed guards. Since then, Japan has claimed the sovereignty of the islands and denounced "the illegal occupation".

Without worrying about office conflicts, Sin-yeol worked as an offshore diver until 2017, when his poor health forced him to quit his job. "She says living in Dokdo is relaxing," her son-in-law Kim Kyung-chul told CNN this week in a report about the lonely female population.

As reported by CNN, the spouses have been the only permanent residents of the islands for years, although the population of police and lighthouse operators has changed, as has the sporadic tourist visit.

Kim lives with her daughter Kim Jin-hee in Pohang, on the Korean coast, until the renovation work on the islands is completed. When I come back, he will remain the only one. "There is only one space for one household to stay as a resident," said a government official.

Although her daughter and her son-in-law plan to settle with her in Dokdo, with what, in a way, to triple the population of the islands. The girl plans to sell stamps, soaps and seafood to tourists on the four-hour ferry ride from the mainland.

"Koreans are very protective of their culture and race, they want to protect everything they have," said photographer Tim Franco, who visited the islands several months ago to to maintain with
National Geographic.