Reports have reached the media this week of cannibalism in Northern Korea where isolated regimes have been forced to eat family members because of starvation. The act made world headlines because a man was recently put to death for killing both his son and daughter, then offering their flesh to his wife when she returned from a trip. The wife eventually found the partial bodies of her children hidden under the eaves of her home
This is not the first report of cannibalism in the region, and North Korea has been beset with particularly hard times after a drought and then tropical cyclone ravage the country.
For the first time in years, the nation was forced to accept food aid from its mortal enemy, South Korea., a testament to how truly bad the famine has become. Sadly, North Korea has been in the grip of this starvation on and off since the 1990’s.
Back in Recent History..
But cannibalism in the world is nothing new, and not only is it still practice among certain tribes in most continents, cannibalism is known to occur when people are placed in situations where they have no other choice if they want to live. A prime example of this is the story of the Uruguayan rugby team who were involved in the crash of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571, which crashed into the Andes Mountains on October 13, 1972.
Miles and miles away from civilization and faced with bitter temperatures and winter storms, the Andes survivors had no choice but to eat the flesh of the dead. While they didn’t kill anyone for meat, those who survived were forced the make the decision to eat human flesh or waste away from the pains of starvation. Not surprisingly, most opted to partake in the taboo practice, but some refused—and perished.
Cannibalism a Natural Process?
So the question is, no matter how repulsive it might seem to you now, would you be willing to eat another human being in order to extend your own life? Would you kill another person for that purpose? Why is there such shame in the practice? After all, many animals in nature eat their own kind. Some, like the cats and dogs we love so much, will cannibalize their own young. Granted, you don’t generally see animals killing and eating their own kind, but if they do, it’s part of a natural process.
Humans have separated themselves from the rest of the animal kingdom, and in doing so have established certain unspoken rules and regulations. But why is it really wrong to eat another human being? Granted, murdering someone to eat them when there is plenty of other food around is frowned on, but if someone was already dead, would it be as unsavory?
Strange to think about, but maybe people actually taste good.