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Peace Boat at the PyeongChang Global Peace Forum
The PyeongChang Winter Olympics of February 2018 heralded the beginning of new hope for peace on the Korean Peninsula, launching a diplomatic process towards dialogue and cooperation. As the two Koreas marched into the stadium under the unified Korea flag, and athletes competed together as one Korean team, the world looked towards the Korean Peninsula with encouragement and solidarity. This process was made possible through the nonviolent, citizen-led Candlelight Revolution, which instated President Moon Jae-in's government in 2017.
To mark the first anniversary of this historic moment, a coalition of Korean civil society groups, with the support of local government and KOICA, convened the PyeongChang Global Peace Forum, bringing together over 500 people from 50 countries and 200 civil society organisations. Held between February 9-11, 2019, this provided an opportunity for reflection upon the developments of the past year, the challenges still at play, and together develop concrete action plans towards support for the Korean Peninsula peace process, nuclear disarmament, and promotion of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. This gathering built upon not only the “PyeongChang Peace Spirit,” but also marked the 20th anniversary of the Hague Appeal for Peace.
Peace Boat was actively involved in various aspects of this forum, with Yoshioka Tatsuya, Kawasaki Akira and Meri Joyce participating as speakers in a range of sessions including the Opening Plenary and panels on the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, landmines and disarmament, and the establishment of peace and security mechanisms in the Northeast Asian region. Peace Boat was also represented in the International Draft Committee which coordinated the collaborative process leading to the final outcome documents of the conference - the PyeongChang Peace Agenda, the PyeongChang Declaration for Peace 2019, and a Resolution for Sustaining the Peace Process in the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia.
Please see the website of the PyeongChang Global Peace Forum for full information.
