Lee, who first discovered the tunnel, requested in his conciliation application on April 3 that the nation pay him 100 million won as a reward. Judge Gwak Sang-hyun of the Seoul Central District Court said yesterday the court ruled in its compulsory arbitration that “the nation should dig up the land and see whether the cave is artificial or natural.”

“There is a need to grasp why the tunnel was excavated in order to decide whether the nation should give Lee a reward,” said the judge. “Now that the neighborhood of the tunnel is a military protection area, the nation should dig it up and see what the cave is all about.”

Compulsory arbitration is a conciliation system that closes a lawsuit if parties involved do not demur to the court within two weeks after receiving a conciliation recommendation from the court. In this case, the court considers that the parties involved have agreed to the recommendation. If they demur, conciliation is frustrated, and they will pursue a merits suit.

Lee, a resident of Yeoncheon County, Gyeonggi Province, reported to a broadcasting company in March 2000 that he found a tunnel in a hillock in his neighborhood, which was supposedly dug by North Korea with the purpose of invading the South. When the company aired a program covering the story, the Ministry of National Defense vehemently denied Lee’s claims.

Lee filed a suit against the nation in April 2003, demanding that it recognize the Yeoncheon tunnel. The action was dismissed.

Next, Lee filed an administrative litigation, which was again rejected. Then, he applied for the court’s conciliation to receive a reward.