Crossing the Line GIS Activity

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Where is it?
My First new country, Korea, is in South Western Asia. It is west of Japan and east of China. It covers the area currently known as North and South Korea. My second new countries, East Congo and West Congo, are in Central Africa. They are north of Angola and west of Tanzania. They are in the current state of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. West Congo is south and west of the Congo and Lualaba Rivers. East Congo is north and east of these two rivers.

WHY are they there?
If or when the North Korean regime collapses, it would lead to the probability of the military boundary opening up. The two country's populations already are of the same ethnic group and speak the same language, so they most likely would like to be united. The two countries were once a nation-state, but due to governmental differences they broke up. This means that the two populations are similar and share common ancestry which is a centripetal force. The reason my second countries could possibly be created is mainly because the Democratic Republic of the Congo should never have been created. It currently has distant, outsiders trying to join up with more prosperous countries which is a major centrifugal force. There are also numerous culture groups within the country which is also a centrifugal force. Finally, it's borders were drawn as a geometric boundary by the French, which means that they weren't looking at the population inside. This makes the country unstable.

Why are they THERE?
For Korea I chose to use a cultural boundary. The culture traits I went off of were race and language.
For East and West Congo I used a physical boundary. I used the Congo and Lualaba Rivers, which are both part of the Congo River system, to separate the country into an east and a west.

What difference will it make?
If North Korea and South Korea joined together it would create an economic change, especially in the poorer North Korea. This could cause some conflict, but I believe that having a nation-state and being reunited with family would outweigh it. It would ultimately create a more peaceful environment in what is now North Korea (assuming they take on South Korea's current government). Overall, I think Korea would be better off than it is now. I also think the Democratic of the Congo would be better if it split up. Currently it is comprised of multiple different groups of people with different economic levels. If it splits up there will be less reason for conflict and the country will start to become more developed.