[Peace-discuss] Fwd:

Tue May 27 13:36:09 CDT 2003

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Fwd:
From: Mariellen Gilpin <m-gilpin at uiuc.edu>
Date: Mon, May 26, 2003 11:31 am
To: (Recipient list suppressed)


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>Date: Mon, 26 May 2003 10:42:03 -0500
>To: (Recipient list suppressed)
>From: Sharon Haworth <shaworth at shout.net>
>Subject:
>
>Dear Friends, As one of IYM's representatives to the AFSC Corporation I
>  pass on the following
>information. It should be of particular interest to Chicago area
> Friends.  -- Dawn Rubbert
>
>May 21, 2003
>
>SOUTH KOREAN LEADERS URGE DIPLOMACY,
>WARN DANGER OF ESCALATING TENSIONS WITH NORTH KOREA
>
>AFSC Sponsors Ten-Day Tour in Washington, New York, Chicago, San
> Francisco, Boston, Iowa, and New Hampshire
>
>Philadelphia, PA - Seven prominent South Koreans will visit the United
> States on a ten-day tour beginning the first week of June. The tour is
> sponsored by the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), a Quaker
> group  working internationally for peace and reconciliation.
>
>The delegation is headed by two members of the National Assembly of
> South  Korea; a leader of the ruling Millennium Democratic Party and a
>representative of the opposition Grand National Party. The group also
> includes three representatives of influential civil society
> organizations  and two renowned academics. All are members of the
> recently created  National Council for Peace on the Korean Peninsula.
>
>The delegation will visit seven US locations from June 1 -10: New York,
>  Washington DC, Chicago, San Francisco, Boston, Des Moines, Iowa, and
> Manchester New Hampshire. During their stay, the delegates will meet
> with  representatives of Congress, prominent NGOs, and other important
> institutions.
>
>The purpose of the visit is two-fold. First, in meeting with U.S.
> government officials, the delegation hopes to discuss the Bush
>Administration's current policy towards the Korean peninsula.
>"As South Koreans, all of the delegates are greatly troubled about
> North  Korea's possession of weapons of mass destruction and the
> tensions that  have been mounting between North Korea and the United
> States," states  James Reilly, AFSC Quaker International Affairs
> Representative based in  East Asia, who is a tour organizer. "Although
> the visitors have diverse  interests, they all wish to address the
> situation in a peaceful way.  Encouraging the United States to engage
> North Korea through economic  assistance and dialogue is their
> immediate concern."
>Secondly, the delegation will work to raise American awareness of
> important issues in Korea while establishing institutional links
> between  the US and the Koreas, particularly to address arms control
> and
>nonproliferation.
>
>"Peace on the divided Korean Peninsula, that is already fragile, has
> recently deteriorated due to hostile interactions based on mutual
> mistrust," states Professor Kun Young Park, member of the National
> Council  for Peace on the Korean Peninsula and delegate on the tour.
> "Innocent  lives are at grave risk. We want to help concerned
> American's understand  the complex nature of the problem and suggest an
> alternative approach."
>
>Backed by an 85 year history working for peace in an atmosphere of war,
>  the Service Committee urges the Bush Administration to participate in
> a  thorough dialogue with North Korea and adopt a strong political and
> economic engagement policy that would include a humanitarian assistance
>  program. The organization believes that American cooperation with both
>  halves of the Korean peninsula is imperative in order to achieve both
> immediate diplomatic and long-term peace-building goals.
>
>With national headquarters in Philadelphia and offices in 22 countries
> of  the world, AFSC emphasizes people, not politics or ideology -
> upholding  the dignity and promise of every person. At the request of
> President  Hoover, AFSC launched massive programs to feed millions of
> starving  children in post-war Germany. On behalf of the United
> Nations, AFSC  administered relief for over 200,000 refugees in the
> Gaza Strip in the 1940s.
>
>Launched on May 7, the National Council for Peace on the Korean
> Peninsula  seeks common principles and programs to build peace on the
> Korean  Peninsula and, in particular, to resolve the North Korean
> nuclear crisis  peacefully by building consensus among South Korean
> civil society leaders  and cooperating with members of the National
> Assembly.
>
>AFSC worked with South Korean refugees during the Korean War. Today the
>  organization provides agricultural assistance to farms in North Korea
> and  sponsors technical and cultural exchanges between the US and North
> Korea.  Additional information about AFSC is available on the web at
> www.afsc.org.
>
># # #
>
>The American Friends Service Committee is a Quaker organization that
> includes people of various faiths who are committed to social justice,
> peace and humanitarian service. Its work is based on the belief in the
> worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome
> violence  and injustice.
>
>Delegates:
>
>Woo-Jae Lee is a member of the National Assembly for the Grand National
>  Party, representing the Kum-Chon Gu district in Seoul. He has served
> on  the Agriculture, Forestry, Maritime Affairs, and Fisheries
> Committee and  is former vice-president of the Grand National Party.
>
>Jae Kwon Shim is a member of the National Assembly for the Millennium
> Democratic Party (MDP), representing the Kangdong-ku district in Seoul.
> He  works on the Culture and Tourism Committee and served as the MDP
> Chief  Secretary to President Kim Dae Jung.
>
>Hyun Back Chung is a Professor of History at Sungkyunkwan University
> and a  leader in women's rights. She is Co-representative of Korean
> Women's  Association United and General Secretary of Korean Committee
> of
>International Historian's Congress. She has also served as the General
> Secretary of the Korean Society for Western History.
>
>Kab Woo Koo is a professor in the School of North Korean Studies at
> Kyungnam University and also a member of the executive committee of the
>  Center for Peace and Disarmament at People's Solidarity for
> Participatory  Democracy.
>
>Hyun Sook Lee is Representative of Women Making Peace and the East Asia
>  Civil Society Forum. She has served on the Advisory Committee of the
> Council for Democracy, Peace, and Unification, as well as the Advisory
> Planning Committee of the South Korean Ministry of Unification.
>
>Kun Young Park is a Professor at Catholic University of Korea in the
> Department of International Relations, Dean of the School of
> International  Studies, and former Dean of the graduate school. He has
> written two books  and numerous articles about politics of the Korean
> Peninsula.
>
>Gyung-Lan Jung is a trainer at the Conflict Resolution Center in Seoul
> and  works for Women Making Peace in international affairs. She had
> experience  as an intern at the Women's International League for Peace
> and Freedom in  Geneva.
>
>Jenny Shields
>Director, Media and Public Relations
>American Friends Service Committee
>1501 Cherry Street
>Philadelphia, PA 19106
>Phone: 215.241.7060
>Fax: 215.241.7275
>E-mail: jshields at afsc.org
>
>QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
>"Of course the people don't want war... That is understood. But after
> all,  it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and
> it's always  a simple matter to drag the people along whether it's a
> democracy, a  fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist
> dictatorship. Voice  or no voice, the people can always be brought to
> the bidding of the  leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell
> them they are being  attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of
> patriotism and exposing  the country to danger. It works the same in
> any country."
>
>-- Hermann Goering, Adolf Hitler's Deputy Chief and Luftwaffe
> Commander,  at the Nuremberg trials, 1946 from "Nuremberg Diary" by G M
> Gilbert
>
>
>IYM has a website! Visit it at: <www.ilym.org>.
>
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