Disputed Dokdo Islands

The five South Korean students are Kang Sang-kyun, Yi Gang-seok, Kim Young-bin, Kim Sang-kyun and Hong Seung-il.

After leaving Korea on March 1, they will traverse the U.S. and Canada, cross the Atlantic to Europe, through the Middle East, SE Asia and China.

Their 34,000 kilometre trip will cover 23 countries.

South Koreans have reacted with fury as Japan has stepped up its claim to the uninhabited rocks, known as Dokdo in Korean and Takeshima in Japanese. Seoul says it considers sovereignty over the islands more important than good relations with Japan. "Whenever Japan lays claim to Dokdo, I want to inform the world about the Dokdo issue in person," team leader Kang Sang-kyun said, according to Korean media.

"If we drive around the world on motorcycles, perhaps more people will take interest in the issue."

The students will travel to Los Angeles first. After working to raise the awareness of the Dokdo issue among Koreans living there, they will meet the mayor of Los Angeles to ask for his support. They will then visit San Francisco, the official departure point for their journey. San Francisco was chosen because the 1951 San Francisco Peace Treaty between the U.S. and Japan omitted a specific resolution to the Dokdo sovereignty issue.

While traveling, they will visit prestigious universities around the world, such as Harvard, and hold seminars and mock trials to reveal the falsity of Japan’s claims to the islets.

They also plan to inform people around the world about Dokdo through Samulnori performances, signature-collecting campaigns, and distributing pamphlets.

The five, who met each other in 2003 while serving in the army, created a group called "The Dokdo Riders" last March. To pay for the trip, they earned and saved money through private tutoring and other part time jobs.

People close to them also tried to talk them out of the plan, saying, "Your intentions are good, but it is a reckless plan."