Editing Tumen River (section)

==Illegal crossings==
The Tumen has been crossed for years by [[North Korean defectors|North Korean refugees defecting]] across the Chinese border. Most refugees from North Korea during the [[North Korean famine|1990s famine]] crossed it, and most recent refugees have also used it, as it is far easier than crossing the [[Amnok River]].<ref name="winter-crossings" /> The Tumen is the preferred crossing because, unlike the swift, deep and broad Amnok River that runs along most of the border between the two countries, the Tumen is shallow and narrow.<ref name=times1006 /> In some areas it can be crossed on foot, or by short swims.<ref name=times1006 /> It freezes in winter, allowing dry crossings.<ref name="winter-crossings" /><ref>{{cite news |quote=[...] adding that winter is the optimal time of year for North Koreans who wish to defect to cross the frozen Tumen River that separates the country from China, if security is not too heavy. |first=Sunghui |last=Moon |translator-first=Leejin |translator-last=Jun |translator-first2=Roseanne |translator-last2=Gerin |publisher=[[Radio Free Asia]] |title=North Korea Tightens Security Before Major Military Parade |url=https://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/north-korea-tightens-security-before-major-military-parade-01242018161419.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125013902/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/north-korea-tightens-security-before-major-military-parade-01242018161419.html |archive-date=25 January 2018}}</ref> Defectors wishing to cross the Tumen often ignore its pollutants and dangerous border patrol, and spend weeks if not months or years waiting for the perfect opportunity to cross. "Long, desolate stretches of the Chinese-North Korean border are not patrolled at all", according to a ''New York Times'' article.<ref name=times1006 />

Refugees rarely cross the Tumen into Russia. This is because [[North Korea–Russia border|Russia's short stretch]] of the river is far better patrolled than China's stretch.<ref name=times1006 /> In addition, the rewards for doing so are not as high since the [[North Koreans in Russia|ethnic Korean community in Russia]] is far smaller to receive sufficient support from, as opposed to China, which has a larger Korean population. Lastly, North Korean authorities have been known to infiltrate Russia looking for defectors and those who collaborate to assist them; the 1996 murder of [[Choe Deok-geun]] in the border city of [[Vladivostok]] prompted South Korean authorities to be very reluctant to provide defectors with any assistance.

The Tumen is also crossed illegally by soldiers and others seeking food and money. Some Chinese villagers have left the border area because of the attacks.<ref name="winter-crossings">{{Cite news|author1=Zhai, Keith  |author2=Kim, Sam |name-list-style=amp |title=North Koreans Walk Across Frozen River to Kill Chinese for Food|date=14 January 2015|newspaper=Bloomberg News|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-13/north-koreans-walk-across-frozen-river-to-china-to-commit-murder.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150115082328/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-13/north-koreans-walk-across-frozen-river-to-china-to-commit-murder.html|archive-date=15 January 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

The history of conflict in the area (examples include incidents during the [[Battle of Lake Khasan]]) was alluded to in singer Kim Jeong-gu's song 'Tearful Tumen River (눈물 젖은 두만강)', which became an ode to families separated by such tragedies and by defections during the Korean War.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kim |first1=Seon-hee [a.k.a. Sonya] |title=VOD ~ 디지털 KBS|url=http://vod.kbs.co.kr//index.html?source=episode&sname=vod&stype=vod&program_code=T2011-0781&program_id=PS-2018039707-01-000&section_code=04&broadcast_complete_yn=N&local_station_code=00 |publisher=KBS |location=@ 15m 19s mark in video |language=ko |date=24 March 2018 |quote=[Translation] I heard that the song consoled many of those who lost their families, or had to leave their hometowns under Japanese occupation and during the Korean war. It made me realize the power of music once again}}</ref> The humanitarian crisis along the Tumen River was dramatized in the 2010 feature-length film ''[[Dooman River]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|author=Bardot, Nicolas|year=2010|title=La Rivière Tumen |language=fr |website=Film de Culte |url=http://www.filmdeculte.com/cinema/film/Riviere-Tumen-La-3345.html|access-date=15 January 2015}}</ref>

<gallery>
File:Tumen River Bridge.jpg|Bridge of Tumen River, built in 1941
File:Tumen River Bridge in 2018.jpg|Bridge of Tumen River, shot in 2018
File:Tumen River Winter.jpg|North Korea is on the other side of the Tumen River
File:Tumen River Winter2.jpg|View across the river from Tumen city in China to the town of Namyang in North Korea
</gallery>