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2019 International Conference Opening Remarks from Dr. Wankyu Choi

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2019-12-10 11:31
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Below is the transcript of the opening remarks at the 2019 International Conference on Humanitarian Cooperation and Peaceful Development on the Korean Peninsula hosted at New York University, NYC on November 1st and 2nd. One of KSM’s co-standing presidents Wankyu Choi delivered the address. Dr. Choi is a chair professor at Shinhan University and the director of the Institute of Trans-division and Border Studies, as well as an honorary professor at the University of North Korean Studies. He is also the president and an advisory committee member to the Korean Association of North Korean Studies. In 2018, Dr. Choi served as a senior adviser for the 2018 Inter-Korean Summit.


 

2019 International Conference Opening Remarks


Wankyu Choi


Korean Sharing Movement Co-standing President


Good morning and welcome to the 2019International Conference on Humanitarian Cooperation and Peaceful Development on the Korea peninsula.
I am both pleased and honored to be able to open this meeting with you here today at the end of fall for what promises to be a very meaningful gathering.


Firstly, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of those that have made this two day conference here in New York possible. Particularly Gyeonggi province who have partnered with the Korean Sharing Movement for a long time in not just cooperative projects run in the North but have also always taken great interest in, and had passion for, this conference and have therefore supported it financially accordingly. I thank Myung Seob Shin the Director General of the Peace Division and his team for their support.


In many respects the whole reason we could host this conference here in the United States is thanks to the National Committee on North Korea (NCNK). Executive Director Keith Luse has attended this conference on numerous occasions in the past in Seoul and when we stated that we wanted to host this year’s conference here in New York he has coordinated with us closely and agreed to be a joint host. We thank you and your colleagues deeply for your efforts.


Ladies and gentlemen, attendees of the 2019 International Conference, you imbue this conference with great meaning through your interest and participation. The first International Conference on Humanitarian and Development Assistance to the DPRK was hosted in 2009. We hosted the first ten meetings in Seoul, Beijing, and Bangkok. The result of those meetings is that this conference is acknowledged at the forefront of gatherings regarding assistance and cooperation with the DPRK.


This year we have changed the name of the conference to the ‘International Conference on Humanitarian Cooperation and Peaceful Development on the Korean Peninsula’. ‘Assistance’ has been changed to ‘cooperation’ and the phrase ‘peaceful Development’ has been used for the first time. Furthermore the phrase ‘to the DPRK’ has been replaced by the phrase ‘on the Korean Peninsula’.


At the opening of the 2018 international conference when the concept of inter-Korean peaceful prosperity was in the ascendency I emphasized that there was a need for South Korean NGOs, international NGOs, and international organizations to redesign their assistance projects to the DPRK. Sometimes the naming of something can predetermine its nature and the role of an organization’s work. Therefore, there is a need to change thinking from ‘assistance’ to ‘cooperation’ projects. A project which simply defines and regards the North as a benefactor cannot be successful. Regarding the other as a recipient in a one directional transaction rather than as a partner is setting the project up to fail.


Also, South Korean cooperative projects and international cooperative projects need to be categorized separately. The promotion of universal rights and common humanity that has propelled international society’s humanitarianism in the DPRK is different in nature to projects originating in the South and the contradiction of a special relationship where despite ethnic Koreans working together on cooperative projects they represent two separate states.


The Korean Sharing Movement’s biggest motivation in hosting this conference in New York was to hear vividly, on the ground, the voices of international society and of the USA. For peace, prosperity and denuclearization we want to convey to the UN and to international society our desire for dialogue and trust building between the U.S and the DPRK as well as for cooperation that leads to peace and reconciliation on the Korean peninsula. We also want to remind you of the fact of how South Korean NGOs’ cooperative projects in the North have contributed to the push for peace on the Korean peninsula and the reduction in tensions between south and north.


Ladies and gentlemen,


The Korean Sharing Movement has engaged in cooperative projects in the north for over twenty years. We want to use this meeting as a forum to discuss humanitarian assistance and development cooperation with you. North Korea has a population of 25 million people. According to the UN’s latest ‘Needs and Priorities’ report 43.4% of the DPRK’s population, 10.9 million people are suffering from malnutrition. The report states that these people are in urgent need of food and nutrition, healthcare, and WASH related humanitarian assistance. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has acknowledged that North Korea’s food production has recorded its lowest level in yen years. The USDA’s ‘International Food Security Assessment, 2019-2029’ states there is little prospect of improvement in the DPRK’s food situation in the near future or even in ten years’ time.


Humanitarian assistance must follow where there is humanitarian need. That is why the World Food Program (WFP), the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF and other UN organizations remain active in Pyongyang despite the difficulties they face in their work. As the UN adopted the Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2030 in 2016 they reiterated their rallying call of ‘Leave No One Behind!’


Nevertheless I am aware that UN and international organizations resident in Pyongyang that engage in humanitarian activities are enduring great difficulties. As you are all well aware sanctions on the DPRK are having unintended impacts on the population in North Korea. In reality, sanctions that were intended to curb North Korea’s nuclear program and military provocations have had a greater impact on increasing hardships in civilians’ lives than achieving their original goals. The adverse civilian impact is a result of assuming sanctions are equivalent to a regime guarantee (nuclear weapons). At the state level can they be of equal value? The ‘unintended’ suffering of North Korean civilians is a result of this arrogant miscalculation in statecraft.


The UN resolutions regarding sanctions state they “are not intended to have adverse humanitarian consequences for the civilian population of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) or to affect negatively or restrict those activities, including economic activities and cooperation, food aid and humanitarian assistance, that are not prohibited by these resolutions.” Despite this clause, UN agencies and European organizations active in relief activities in North Korea attest there are many problems in carrying out their work due to sanctions.


South Korean NGOs are encountering greater difficulties. Thanks to the efforts of UN agencies since last summer an exemptions application process was established and there are increasing cases of international organizations receiving sanctions exemptions for their humanitarian activities. However, to date not a single South Korean organization has been granted an exemption. No doubt there are difficulties due to communication and not being resident in North Korea. However, what is clear is that sanctions on the DPRK are having a grave impact on all humanitarian organizations and particularly South Korean ones.


Thankfully, last March’s report from the 1718 Committee’s Panel of Experts acknowledged the problem in some detail and made recommendations about a white list and other possible countermeasures. This is why the Korean Sharing Movement is having our international conference here in New York this year, so that we can have frank discussions with the UN and international society about these issues.


In 1998 during his visit to Cuba Pope John Paul II called not only for Cuba to open itself to the world, but also for the world to open itself to Cuba. Now is the time for us to combine our efforts for North Korea to open its doors and the world to open their doors to each other. During these two days of meetings I hope that we can share the difficulties that we have encountered, and search for various solutions to overcome the challenges that we face in engaging in humanitarian endeavors in North Korea.


Once again, thank you all for joining with us here today.


November 1st 2019


Korean Sharing Movement Co-standing President


Wankyu Choi