The 2010 Northeast Asia Women’s Peace Conference

■ Dates        October 5^th (Tuesday) to 7^th (Thursday), 2010

■ Venue The Seoul Women’s Plaza (Seoul, South Korea)

■ Theme      Women’s Initiative for Creating Korean Peace Regime

■ Description

In October 2010, the organizing committee of the Northeast Asia Women’s Peace Conference will hold its international conference at the Seoul Women’s Plaza in Seoul, South Korea. The Conference will seek ways to reduce tension and cultivate peace on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia, to foster reconciliation and cooperation among women in Northeast Asia, and to realize the U.N. SCR 1325.  The conference will consist of five linked events:

-       A public event at the Seoul Women’s Plaza in Seoul, South Korea;

-       Meetings with the members of the South Korean Government and Embassies of the Six-Party talk countries ? China, Japan, Russia, and the U.S.A.;

-       A strategy session for women representatives of the countries participating in the Six Party Talks;

-       A press conference;

-       A visit to the DMZ, the politico-geographical symbol of the division of Korea between the DPRK (North) and Republic of Korea (South).

■ Background

In 2007, Women Making Peace organized a “South Korean Women’s Peace Delegation” comprised of women leaders and lawmakers involved in the Women’s Six Party Talks.  Later that year, the Women’s Peace Delegation visited the five other countries participating in the Six Party Talks on the DPRK's (North Korea) nuclear program: China, the DPRK, Japan, Russia, and the U.S.A.  The delegation articulated the importance of gender empowerment in fostering reconciliation, cooperation, and peace in Korea and Northeast Asia, and urged the normalization of relations between the DPRK and United States, as well as the DPRK and Japan.

In 2008, Women Making Peace, Korean Women’s Association United and the Women’s Committee of The Korean Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation organized the “2008 Northeast Asia Women’s Peace Conference.”  The conference was held in Seoul, South Korea in September 2008.  Participants of the Conference primarily came from China, Japan, Russia and the U.S.A., with representatives from international women’s associations and Congresswomen from Japan and South Korea. All participants broadened their understanding through dialogue with NGO representatives, as well as unofficial talks with two participating Congresswomen from Japan and South Korea.  The Women’s Conference focused on building common ground to reduce misunderstandings and mistrust caused by colonial and Cold War experiences, as well as differences amongst the diverse political-economic systems and cultures of Northeast Asia.  Representatives from five countries gave presentations about their experiences and viewpoints for fostering peace in Northeast Asia.

In 2009, the “Organizing Committee of the Northeast Asia Women’s Peace Conference” co-hosted the “2009 Northeast Asia Women’s Peace Conference” entitled “Negotiating Regional Peace, Reconciliation and Cooperation” with the Sigur Center for Asian Studies at The George Washington University in Washington, DC.  Participants at the 2009 conference were women from China, Japan, Russia, South Korea, the U.K., and the U.S.A.  Former Prime Minister Myung Sook Han of the Republic of Korea and Ambassador Melanne S. Verveer, the U.S.A. Ambassador at Large for Global Women’s Issues, delivered keynote speeches at the conference.  The goals of this conference were to strengthen relations among women and women’s participation in the peace process (Track II diplomacy) and to seek ways to coordinate Track I and Track II through dialogue for building peace in the Northeast Asian region.  Women representing the Six Parties visited the U.S.A. Congress and State Department (Sung Kim, the special envoy for the Six-Party Talks); and shared their experiences and thoughts on issues facing the Korean Peninsula.  Participants emphasized the importance of a comprehensive approach to fostering peace on the Korean Peninsula, and urged the U.S.A. Government to include women’s Track II initiatives in support of the official Six-Party Talks. 

In 2010, the Conference will focus on reducing military tension and fostering peace among the six countries.  Relations between these countries are rooted in the Cold War political-economic dynamics and characterized by the Korean War Armistice that still sets the agenda for the Korean Peninsula, the DPRK nuclear programs, and the absence of normalization of relations between the DPRK and the U.S.A., as well as between the DPRK and Japan.  In particular, the Cheonan warship sinking incident last March demonstrated the possibility of how easily escalation of tensions can lead to a crisis on the Korean Peninsula; and the instability of the West Sea Northern Limit Line.  We believe that there is no development for women without peace, and there is no peace without gender equality.  There is a desperate need to replace the Cold War geopolitical economy with a culture of peace. 

■ Goals of Women’s Meetings in Seoul in 2010

1.      Search for Common Ground: the Conference will invite women representatives from countries of the Six-Party Talks to discuss the DPRK’s nuclear program and suggestions regarding the “Women’s Initiative for Creating Korean Peace Regime.”  The Northeast Asian Women’s Peace Conference will view peace not only from each country’s perspective but also from a regional viewpoint. The main objective is to seek common ground for fostering peace on the Korean Peninsula, the focal point of the Northeast Asian crisis, and to express women’s views on relations between peace and women’s development.

2.      Delivery of Policy Recommendations: participants of the conference will visit the South Korean Government and Embassies of the Six-Party Talk countries, such as China, Japan, Russia, and the U.S.A.; listen to each country’s policies towards the Korean Peninsula (including issues related to the DPRK’s nuclear program and the peace process on the Korean Peninsula), and deliver policy recommendations discussed at the peace conference.

3.      Empowerment of Track II diplomacy and Track I and Track II cooperation: this conference will reinforce women’s Track II activities and seek ways to cooperate with Track I activities for reducing tensions and fostering peace in the Northeast Asia.  The true end of the Korean War on the Korean Peninsula and establishment of a peace process will only be obtained not just by the peace agreement between the concerned governments, but also by civilian participation in the peace process.

4.      Implementation of UNSCR 1325: the peace conference is a process to implement the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) and the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security (2000).  As of May 2010, eighteen countries established National Action Plans in order to implement the UN SCR 1325. Needless to say, decision-making in the Northeast Asia regional security dialogue has heretofore been monopolized by men.  Bringing women’s voices to the table is in keeping with UN SCR 1325, which recognized "the important role of women in the prevention and resolution of conflicts and in peace-building and stressing the importance of their equal participation and full involvement in all efforts for the maintenance and promotion of peace and security."

■ Programs

October 5, 2009

Public Session

10:00-10:20

                                                           Moderator: Minister Gong-Hyun Lee, Won-Buddhism 

Introductory Remarks

                                                               Minister Sun-jong Lee & Professor Hyun-back Chung

                                         Co-Chairpersons, Organizing Committee of the Northeast Asian Women’s Peace Conference

Welcoming Remarks 

                                                                                           Honorable Ms. Han Myeong-Sook

                                                                                    Former Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea

                                                                                         Honorable Ms.Paik, Hee Young 

                                                                                       Minister of Gender Equality and Family

                                                                                            Honorable Ms. Young Hee Choi

                                                                             Chairperson, Gender Equality and Family Committee, 

                                                                                    National Assembly of the Republic of Korea

10:20-12:00

Session I: Keynote Speeches 

                                                               Moderator: Ms. Jiyoung Choi, Professor, Hallym University

1)      Peace in Northeast Asia and Korean Peace Regime

Ms. Insoon NamYoon, Representative, Korean Women’s Associations United

2)      Peace Negotiation Process and Women ? Experiences and Lessons of the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition

Ms. Bronagh Hinds, Co-founder of the Women's Coalition

Questions and Answers

12:00-1:30 Lunch

1:30-4:30

Session II: Country Reports on Fostering Peace in Northeast Asia 

                                                                  Moderator: Ms. Gyung-Lan Jung, Coordinator

Russia : Ms. LebeMsMsdeva Nina Boresovna, Member of the Women's Union of Russia, Leading Scholar at the Institute of Eastern Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences

United States : Ms. Linda J.Yarr, Director, Program for International Studies in Asia, George Washington University

China : Ms. Sun Jisheng, Dean of the Department of English and International Studies, China Foreign Affairs University

Japan: Ms. Chie Yoshimura, Vice President, YWCA of Japan

ROK: Ms. Young Hee Cho, Representative, Women Making Peace

Questions and Answers

Evening: Welcoming Dinner

Sponsored by Honorable Ms. Young Hee Choi, Chairperson, Gender Equality and Family Committee, National Assembly of the Republic of Korea

Moderator: Young Sook Cho, The Organizing Committee of the

                   Northeast Asian Women’s Peace Conference

?Welcoming Remarks: Sang Keun Kim,

                   Chairperson, the South Korean Committee for

                   Implementation of the June 15th Joint Declaration

                   Sookyung Yoon, member, The Organizing Committee of the  Northeast Asian Women’s Peace Conference

?Toast Remarks: Young-Ae Choi, former Standing Commissioners

                   National Human Rights Commission of Korea

?Cultural Performance: Won-Buddhism Sextet  / Miran Kim

■ October 6^th

Morning

Strategic Meeting: Discussion regarding policy recommendations and meetings with representatives of Embassies of Six Party Talks.

Lunch

Afternoon: Visit to the US Embassy 

                  Meeting with Honorable Mr. Hyeyoung Won, Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification Committee, National

                                       Assembly of the Republic of Korea

                   Meeting with Honorable Ms. Mikyung Lee, General Secretary of the Democratic Party 

Evening: Networking Dinner

■ October 7^th

Field Trip: DMZ and meeting with a victim of anti-personal landmines

Farewell dinner

■ Contact information

Ms. Gyung Lan Jung      Coordinator

The Organizing Committee of the Northeast Asian Women’s Peace Conference

Rm.401, 4^th Floor, Women’s Center for Equality and Peace, 94-59,

Yeongdengpo Dong 7 Ga, Yeongdengpo Ku, Seoul, 150-037, South Korea,

Email: oktongil@hanmail.net, Phone: 82-2-929-4846(office)

Fax: 82-2-929-4843