Korean Reconciliation and Reunification for Global Peace

TNI

November 2005

Korean Reconciliation and Reunification for Global Peace
The People's Agenda
International Conference, Seoul, 14 August 2001

Introduction

An International Conference on "Korean Reconciliation and Reunification for Global Peace: the People's Agenda" will be held in Seoul on August 13-14, 2001. Experts and representatives of academic institutions and civil society organisations from all over the world are being invited to the event, which is jointly sponsored by all the Korean coalitions supporting reconciliation and several non-Korean civil society organisations.

Rationale

When South Korean President Kim Dae-Jung went to Pyongyang a year ago to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, the gesture caught the imagination of the world and sparked hopes throughout the globe that the glacial structures of the Cold War in Northeast Asia would melt quickly. The rapprochement efforts inside Korea offered a big window of opportunity, not only to address the 50-year division of Korea but to alter the security calculus in East Asia and lay the basis for a new era of global peace.

A year later, however the process of reconciliation and eventual reunification is gravely threatened by a number of factors. These include lack of support from Washington, increasingly apparent since President Bush took up office. This appears to stem from the fact that Korean reconciliation runs counter to the US interest in preserving a long-term military presence on the peninsula, to its strategic focus of "containing" China, and to its plans to build a missile defense system that would cover not just the United States but also Northeast Asia. Besides this, there is no clear signal from North Korea that it intends to push through for a Second Summit and until now the momentum from civil society for the Korean peace process has been weak.

On the other hand, the EU has attached great importance to peace and reconciliation on the Korean peninsula manifested by the recent visit of an EU delegation to North and South Korea under the Swedish Presidency of the EU. Sweden has a longstanding presence on the Korean peninsula, in Pyongyang and in Seoul. The relation between the EU and the Republic of Korea are further strengthened by the Framework Agreement which came into force in April 2001. The EU and the Republic of Korea also agreed to enhance political dialogue and to hold summits on the occasion of the ASEM summits.

The reconciliation initiative until now has been largely a process driven by both Korean Leaders and has not yet harnessed the wider civil society participation and international support which is needed so that the process becomes irreversible and achieves tangible results.

Given the pivotal role of Korea in the security equation in the region and internationally, the prospects of global peace will be greatly affected by the success or failure of the reunification process. The process is two-way. On the one hand, peaceful reunification that involves the military withdrawal of external powers from the peninsula will greatly accelerate the demilitarisation of the rest of the region and globally. On the other hand, support from Asia and the rest of the world, the EU in particular, can be critical in accelerating confidence building measures and in bringing about a peaceful and progressive reunification in Korea.

As was the case during the Korean War and the Cold War, the future of Korea and that of Asia and the world are intertwined, and today, they hang in the balance.

It is in this context that this conference is being called by the Committee on Korean Reconciliation and Reunification for Global Peace. Its fundamental objective is to provide, at this critical juncture, a push from below and from all parts of the world to the reconciliation process and to institutionalise this process.

Conference Objectives

This international Conference aims to:

Explore the interconnections between Korean Reconciliation and Reunification and global peace
Analyse the implications of Asian and international developments for Korean Re-unification
Mobilise international support for Korean reconciliation and reunification, in particular in the EU
Develop an agenda for cooperation between Korean and international organisations and peace movements

Conference Outreach

This Conference builds on existing links and networks among civil society organisations who have worked on regional concerns in Asia - human rights, militarisation, arms trade and peace. The Conference aims to mobilise representatives from peace and human rights movements, religious organisations, trade unions and women's movements. A particular focus is also given to academe and media, because of their important role as opinion makers. Invitations have been extended to all representatives of the Diplomatic Corps in Seoul and a Conference delegation will hold a meeting with the Kim Dae Jung government.

It is expected that Conference will bring together around 100 representatives of Korean civil society with 75-100 of their counterparts from Asia, Europe, and the western hemisphere.

Based on the Resolutions of the Conference, a plan of action will be developed for continuing international co-operation and activities supporting the peace process in Korea.

Sponsors and Committees

The Korean Committee: