2018 Parliament of the World's Religions, Toronto
November 3rd (Saterday), 2018
Peacebuilding on the Korean Peninsula:
What Should Be Done and What Can Be Done
By Ven. Pomnyun Sunim (pomnyun@pf.or.kr)
Guiding Zen Master, Jungto Society
Chairman,
The Peace Foundation
In 1995, when I visited the region in
China that borders North Korea, I witnessed the devastating famine in North
Korea. Starting off with a campaign urging for humanitarian aid to North Korea,
I have since been providing humanitarian aid within North Korea, support for
North Korean refugees in China, and help to North Korean defectors to settle in
South Korea. While carrying out these activities, I have learned that the
underlying issues cannot be fundamentally resolved without first resolving the
security issues of North Korea. Also, since the Korean peninsula is still under
armistice, I believe that there must never be another war on the Korean
Peninsula, and a permanent peace should be established. This would also
contribute to global peace including peace in the Northeast Asia region. As a
result, I have been involved in various activities aimed at establishing peace
on the Korean peninsula and promoting the improvement of inter-Korea and North
Korea-U.S. relations.
Currently, I am carrying out activities related to
North Korea through three social organizations – Good Friends, the Peace
Foundation, and Join Together Society (JTS). Initially, Good Friends helped
North Korean refugees who crossed the border into China to escape the great
famine. The organization also investigated the situation of death from
starvation in North Korea by interviewing the refugees in order to inform the
international community. From 2004 to 2012, it published "North Korea
Today," a weekly newsletter that provided the latest news about North
Korea's internal affairs. During the severe food shortage crisis in 2008, it
was published every day. The English translation of North Korea Today was a
must-read for North Korea watchers including scholars, policy makers, and press
around the world and was posted on the United Nations web page (Relief Web).
Also, Good Friends has reported on recent developments in North Korea through
annual briefings to the U.S. Congress, the U.S. State Department, think tanks,
NGOs, academics, and other organizations in Washington, D.C. and has urged for
humanitarian aid and human rights improvement.
The
Peace Foundation carries out policy research, organizes symposiums, and
conducts civic education to contribute to peace on the Korean peninsula. It
founded the grassroots organization “The Righteous People for Korean
Unification” which works to raise awareness and form public opinion within
South Korean society about peace on the Korean peninsula and the reunification
of the two Koreas. In terms of international activities for peace on the Korean
peninsula, I have visited Washington D.C. every year for the last 20 years to
hold lectures for and have meetings with government officials, members of
Congress, academics, and NGOs. Lastly, I have been providing humanitarian aid
to North Korea through JTS, an international relief organization, especially to
orphanages, nursing homes, and facilities for the disabled in North Korea.
With
the increasing tension between North Korea and the U.S. last year, people in Korea
were anxious that a war would break out. The Peace Foundation and its
affiliated groups organized multiple peace rallies in numerous cities in and
outside of South Korea to oppose wars and urge for peace. The largest rally
among them was held on December 23rd, 2017 in Gwanghwamun Plaza in the middle
of Seoul, where 15,000 citizens gathered to voice their opposition to war and
to demand peace. Also in 2018, we began an online White House petition urging
for peace on the Korean peninsula and the signing of a peace agreement, which
received more than 100,000 signatures within 26 days.
With the experience I have gained so far,
I would like to tell you about the current situation in relation to North Korea
and the path we need to take.
[Current Situation]
When
the Korean war broke out in 1950, a great number of people lost their lives or
their assets. Sixty-five years have passed since the armistice was signed in
1953, but the war has yet to end. As a result, the Korean peninsula has
alternated between the rising and easing of tensions for the past 70 years.
Last year, the tensions between North Korea and the U.S. escalated almost to
the point of a breakout of war. The US President threatened to erase North
Korea from the map, and in turn, Chairman Kim Jong-un of North Korea threatened
to strike the United States and turn it into a sea of fire. However, there has
been a drastic change this year. After a successful inter-Korea summit meeting
in the spring, a North Korea-U.S. summit meeting was held for the first time on
June 12th, 2018. Currently however, we are back to another standstill.
The
reason for the current standstill is the conflict between the demands of North
Korea and those of the U.S. North Korea is demanding that the U.S. halt its
hostile policies and instead guarantee the security of North Korea. The U.S. is
demanding the complete denuclearization of North Korea. This year, North Korea
has opened up the possibility that it may become completely denuclearized if
the U.S. discontinues its hostile policies towards North Korea. This is a
departure from North Korea’s previous insistence on maintaining nuclear weapons
for national security. In response, President Trump decisively agreed to hold a
summit meeting with Chairman Kim Jong-un. He also stated that the U.S. will
work towards abolishing its hostile policy towards North Korea and will ensure
its security. However, North Korea and the U.S. are at a standstill on who will
take the next step. North Korea actually has taken the first step by destroying
its nuclear testing site and disassembling its long-range missile launchers.
Now, it is asking the U.S. to sign a peace treaty. However, from the U.S.
perspective, the measures taken so far by North Korea seem more like only half
of a step rather than a full step towards denuclearization. Therefore, the U.S.
is demanding North Korea to provide a full report on how much nuclear weaponry
it currently possesses to demonstrate that it truly is willing to denuclearize.
However, North Korea is demanding that since it has already taken the first
step, the U.S. should also take a step forward in order to build trust and to
move to the next stage. The two countries have agreed on the overall goal but
are in conflict over the specific details.
The
people of South Korea want peace. In addition to countless deaths and great
economic loss caused by the Korean War, the problem of families separated
during the war has yet to be resolved. We witnessed the heartbreaking stories
of families recently reunited after 70 years. With past problems still
unsolved, we would suffer unimaginable pain if a new war breaks out and the
same tragedies reoccur. A permanent peace must be established on the Korean
peninsula. To make this possible, we need to see progress in the talks between
North Korea and the U.S. It is a matter of survival for those of us living on
the Korean peninsula.
[North Korea’s Stance on Nuclear
Weapons and National Security]
North
Korea is very fearful of the military alliance between South Korea and the U.S.
People may think that North Korea can form a military alliance with China or
Russia. However, North Korea has long
believed in self-reliant national defense, saying that they protect themselves
with their own national defense and they do not rely on others. Thus, North
Korea is insisting that it had no choice but to develop nuclear weapons to
ensure its security because it is not able to protect itself against the threat
of the South Korea-U.S. military alliance with conventional weapons.
North
Korea has two methods for opting to becomes completely denuclearized. One is
for the U.S. to abolish its hostile policies towards North Korea. The other is
to be protected by the nuclear umbrella of China and Russia. Currently,
however, North Korea does not want to receive help from China or Russia.
Therefore, it is difficult for North Korea to become completely denuclearized
before the U.S. takes any action. North Korea does want to develop its economy.
As soon as the U.S. ends its hostile policies towards North Korea, North Korea
is willing to take steps to denuclearize and revive its economy. However, North
Korea is not seeking to revive its economy at the cost of its national
security.
[Things That Can Be Done for Denuclearization]
During
the late 90’s, North Korea experienced the catastrophic tragedy of 3 million
people dying from starvation. Despite suffering such a tragedy, North Koreans
are determined to protect their country. When the international community imposes
sanctions, North Koreans do suffer. However, it is a grave mistake to think
that North Korea will surrender because it is painful. Imposing sanctions may
make North Korea suffer, but it won’t bring policy changes. At this point, we
need to think about what our goal is. Is the goal of imposing economic
sanctions to make the people of North Korea suffer or is it to change North
Korea’s policy on nuclear development? If our goal is to make North Korea
become denuclearized, simply imposing sanctions will not work. This is why we
need to have talks with North Korea, and we should lead the way for North Korea
to take the route of denuclearization while ensuring its security to a certain
extent. From that perspective, I welcome the decision of President Trump. The
majority of the people in the U.S. may think, “Can’t we make even a small
country like North Korea surrender?” However, if you use force, North Korea
will never surrender. So we must have an alternative option if we want to
denuclearize North Korea.
We can
keep making North Korea suffer by imposing sanctions, but this will only cause
the country to develop more nuclear weapons. This will put the neighboring
countries in more danger. On the other hand, we can choose to decrease the
danger by helping North Korea to change. So how can we reduce the danger?
First
of all, we must stop the expansion of nuclear weapons. We must prevent North
Korea from producing more nuclear matter, from developing the nuclear weapons
technology, from sending nuclear experts to another country, and from
developing long-range missiles that can reach the United States. I think these
are the issues that we must resolve first. To this end, we must guarantee the
protection of North Korea. I think we will be able to accomplish this within
1-2 years. However, complete denuclearization is not a simple matter for North
Korea in its current situation. Ensuring security is not something that can be
guaranteed with words. Also, a country cannot become developed in a year or
two. If we are able to strictly inspect and supervise the nuclear material in
North Korea, we can prevent the danger it presents to the world. In addition,
the disposal of nuclear substances is a matter that requires more time.
If we
approach the North Korean nuclear issue in this manner, we may be able to
resolve it. Expecting North Korea to denuclearize right away is unrealistic.
Talks have just begun between North Korea and the U.S. If we go to war and win,
we can obtain everything we want, but the risk and cost are too big. If we want
to resolve the problems through talks, we can not demand 100% of what we want.
We must also make some concessions. That is the only way to resolve the issues
through talks. Also, I believe that we should resolve these issues over an
extended period of time. However, any danger must be stopped right away. And, I
believe that is quite possible.
[The Role of South Korea]
The
situation of North Korea is somewhat different from that of Iraq or Libya
because South Korea is between North Korea and the United States. I believe
that if the South Korean government could assure the security of North Korea,
it may give faith to North Korea that the U.S. will not attack North Korea. The
South Korean government does not want a war regardless of the chances of
winning or losing because war itself poses a tremendous risk. Therefore, South
Korea should play a role in assuring North Korea. However, North Korea does not
completely trust South Korea because it does not think that South Korea has any
decision-making power over the matter of its security. Only if the U.S., as
well as South Korea, takes a more defined stance in opposing war will North
Korea be more assured of its security. In other words, if both parties, not
just South Korea or just the U.S., guarantee the security of North Korea, the
assurance would be more credible than those given to Libya or Iraq in the past.
[The Goal of North Korea]
Some
people question whether the goal of the North Korean government is to maintain
the current political system or to enhance the standard of living of its
people. According to North Korea, the first goal is ensuring the national
security and the second is securing the happiness of its people. North Korea
has already achieved the first goal because it has developed nuclear weapons.
As for the second goal, North Korea wants to develop its economy to improve the
standard of living of its people. If the security of the regime is guaranteed
by the U.S. to some degree – in other words, if the hostile policy of the U.S.
is abandoned – North Korea is willing to give up its nuclear weapons and opt
for developing its economy. However, for North Korea the economic issues cannot
precede the security issues. North Korea will try to tackle its economic issues
only after the security issues have been resolved. Within North Korea, some
reform measures have already been implemented to some extent. Individual
farming and small businesses are permitted in moderation. Over 500 markets are
operated legally throughout the country, so there has been little fluctuation
in the price of rice for the last five years. The exchange rate has also been
stable. Before, most of the daily necessities were imported from China, but
now, 70% of them are produced domestically. Also, although an international
calling service is unavailable, there are over five million cell phones in
service in North Korea. If we take our smartphones to North Korea and obtain
permission to use it, we can make calls to South Korea. South Korea used to
exchange faxes with North Korea via China, but a direct service to North Korea
is now possible. Since reform measures have been implemented within North
Korea, once the national security issue is resolved, North Korea will be ready
to open its doors to the international community. Such internal changes are
gradually taking place.
[What the Citizens Can Do]
North
Korea’s national security must be secured to resolve the North Korean issue.
This is a job for the government. What citizens can do is to pressure the government
to do this job. However, the security issue between North Korea and the U.S.
does not typically become a topic of discussion during the elections in either
the U.S. or South Korea. I believe what citizens can do is to form public
opinion on the need to provide humanitarian aid to North Korea and improve
human rights issues in North Korea or to hold peace rallies against wars.
Although the majority of Americans object to the other policies of President
Trump, I hope that they can support his intentions of holding talks for peace
with North Korea. Many of those in the U.S. Congress, American think tanks, and
officials in the Trump administration are against such talks. Only a few
officials close to President Donald Trump seem to be working toward holding the
talks. When we say that someone is a bad person, not everything about him is
actually bad. He will also have some good points. There seems to be many people
in the U.S. who want the North Korea-U.S. talks to fail. I for one wish the
talks would be successful.
[Sanctions Against North Korea]
Currently,
humanitarian aid to North Korea is not banned, but the strict economic
sanctions against North Korea are greatly deterring humanitarian aid. NGOs are
having difficulty raising funds, have many restrictions in travelling to North
Korea for relief activities, and experience many limitations in sending goods
to North Korea. The World Food Program (WFP) and UN organizations have been
able to receive only 30% of their target donation amount. The most urgent issue
at hand is the danger of anti-tuberculosis drugs currently being supplied to
North Korea being cut off. If a patient
with tuberculosis stops taking medicine, he will develop a tolerance against
the medication, so the cost of treatment will increase by a hundred fold. These
medications should be provided even during a war. The places in North Korea
that need urgent help right now are coal mining towns. Since coal export has
virtually stopped in North Korea, coal miners are not able to receive food
rations, so there are unofficial reports of people dying of starvation. Those
who operate small manufacturing factories are in danger of halting production
either because they are not able to import raw materials from China or are
unable to sell their goods.
People
in North Korea say that in order to effect changes in North Korea, the market
economy should be expanded, but the economic sanctions are shrinking the
economy and the market forces in North Korea. I believe that the humanitarian
crisis in North Korea is not well known in the outside world. North Korea is
very reluctant to reveal this situation. This is because North Korea needs to
make a major deal with the United States, and if the fact that North Koreans
are experiencing severe hardship due to the sanctions is revealed, North Korea
is afraid that the U.S. will only strengthen economic sanctions rather than
provide help. The U.S. is not against humanitarian aid but is passive about it
for the fear that humanitarian aid to North Korea may weaken the effect of
economic sanctions. I think that these political stances are only making the
North Korean people suffer even more. I believe that under any circumstances
humanitarian aid to North Korea should be quickly resumed and expanded.
[Conclusion]
Sixty-five
years have passed since the ceasefire of the Korean War. We need to accept that
it is time for the Korean War to end. We cannot take a step forward if we keep
talking about the wounds of the past. Rather than going back to the past, we
need to take a step forward towards the future. There will be many challenges,
but we can overcome them one by one. Please remember that there are
twenty-three million people living in North Korea. When we think of North
Korea, we only focus on things like nuclear weapons, missiles, and the
dictatorship. However, there are over 20 million people like us living there.
They are suffering extreme hardship due to North Korea’s conflict with other
countries. Specifically, their lives are threatened, and they are experiencing
severe human rights violations. They too have the right to lead happy lives.
Unfortunately, however, they are not able to change their situation on their
own. I believe we should give them hope for a better life by establishing peace
on the Korean peninsula.
