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Y.H. Yun: Address to Peace Summit 2023, Opening Plenary
Written by Dr. Yun Young-ho, Director-General, UPF International
Wednesday, May 3, 2023
Address to Peace Summit 2023
May 2-5, 2023
[The following document is an excerpt from Dr. Yun’s presentation.]
Respected Excellencies and peace-loving world leaders from around the world! I would like to once again welcome you to Peace Summit 2023, the theme of which is: “Regional Cooperation in Realizing a World of Lasting Peace.” Please let us give a big round of applause to everyone.
Respected former and current leaders, and peace-loving leaders! Today, we rejoice at the brilliant prosperity of the digital civilization and the 4th Industrial Revolution, but at the same time, behind the sweetness of the benefits of these civilizations, we also have concerns about social media and technology abuse. Moreover, we see wars based on national egoism, natural disasters caused by climate change, and all-around hegemony centered on nuclear power, economy, resources, technology, semiconductors, and values centered on the great powers. Competition is becoming a pro-causal factor that obstructs the realization of a world of permanent peace centered on coexistence, co-prosperity and public justice, and drives humanity to mutual destruction.
“Peace” is no longer a longing or longing for an ideal state, but a necessary condition for the survival of mankind, and therefore our “great paradigm shift” for “peace” is a necessary and sufficient condition.
For this reason, the Co-Founder of the Universal Peace Federation, the “Mother of Peace,” Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, has stated that the fundamental solution to the realization of a world of permanent peace is the ideal of one human family, with God, the fundamental mother of humankind, as Parent. She advocates the vision of a “divine unified world.”
In order to realize this vision, Dr. Moon instituted the World Summit series at the national level centered on organizations for heads of state, first ladies, parliamentarians, religious leaders, media, academicians, business directors, and leaders in art and culture. The World Summit series, which started with the goal of an alternative mission for the United Nations that transcends national selfishness, has evoked a warm response in each host country. Starting with the Senegal Summit, South Africa Summit, Nepal, Cambodia and Niger Summit, dozens have been held. The series of summits held across all continents presented hope for the possibility of realizing a “peace country” and a “peace continent.” The World Summit 2020 attended by peace leaders presented a blueprint for the realization of a permanent “peaceful world.” Even during the coronavirus pandemic, we moved forward.
Centered on THINK TANK 2022, which is a solidarity of intellectuals around the world, through the online platform, Peace Link, dozens of contests are held in conjunction with state-run and private broadcasting, in which billions of people participate, to promote harmony and coexistence. We raised the torch of hope for the future even higher.
In particular, the “Peace Summit on the Korean Peninsula,” held in February last year in solidarity with 157 countries with joint diplomatic relations between the two Koreas, was broadcast live on 3,517 state-run and private broadcasters around the world, with 85 eminent current and former leaders participating. A consensus was formed.
The “Seoul Declaration,” adopted at this time, was established under the name of Universal Peace Charter with the motto of “One Earth, One Humanity, One Culture” through the Summit and Leadership Conference held in August last year. We laid the ideological foundation for the realization of a world of permanent peace through legislation by continent.
Based on this, in order to create a practical and tangible model of solidarity and cooperation on a continental basis, last year alone, I met several times with the chairman of the African Union and the chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to convey Dr. Moon’s vision.
Today, I would like to briefly introduce several continental projects for a world of peace that are currently being carried out by the Universal Peace Federation.
The first project to be introduced is the Continental Summit centered on the African Union. Africa is a young continent with abundant resources and a population with an average age of 19.5 years. Because of this potential, numerous countries and continents, including China, Japan, the Middle East, and Europe, are currently scrambling for pre-existing leadership in Africa. In particular, the United States, which has been lukewarm, also invited the heads of 45 African countries to Washington in December of last year, where President Biden directly hosted a summit and promised an investment of $60 billion. Korea also officially announced that it would hold the South Korea-Africa Summit in 2024.
UPF, led by our co-founder, has great hope for the development of this extraordinary continent. Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon has visited Africa several times since 2018, held national-level summits, and made sincere efforts for the growth of Africa. She has publically proclaimed her willingness to contribute to peace and development in Africa and has described Africa as “the shining continent of the future.”
In May and September of last year, I paid a courtesy visit to Senegalese President Macky Sall, then chairman of the African Union, a coalition of 54 African countries. We discussed various projects for New Africa at great length, and in particular, we agreed to hold a continental summit at the level of the African Union. In addition, it was decided that this summit would include a summit in solidarity with the ASEAN Union. A summit centered on youth ministers from 25 countries is currently underway with the Community of Sahel-Sahara States (CEN-SAD). President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria (Special Advisor to the President of the African Union) expressed his intention to host this summit, and an official letter was sent in December of last year.
In early January of this year, in Mozambique, 40 broadcasting companies from 30 African countries held the African Continental Summit Launching Ceremony. 150 top-level leaders from 27 African countries attended in person in Mozambique and over 1,500 top-level leaders attended through interactive live broadcasting. An official announcement was made about the Organizing Committee.
All top-level leaders who attended the launching ceremony expressed their deep gratitude to Dr. Moon for presenting this vision, describing this day as a milestone of new hope for the African continent.
These continental projects are also being carried out in Asia, where the fiercest competition for supremacy is currently taking place among the great powers. A third of the world’s population lives in Asia, but Asia doesn’t have a union like Africa or Europe. In particular, in terms of the economy, alliances such as China-focused RECEP, US-centered IREF, and Japan-centered CPTPP compete against each other.
I have had meetings with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, who became the chairman of ASEM (Asia-Europe Meeting) and ASEAN Union, the alliances of the Asia-Europe Summit, in 2021, and discussed further developing the Asia Pacific Union to promote continental solidarity along with the African Union and ASEAN.
Another important project centers on the Mekong River Peace Park Project, which is planned to be the site of the Asia Pacific Union headquarters on Golden Island. The Mekong River is the lifeline of continental civilization, river civilization, and maritime civilization.
Regarding the economic aspect of this project, which will be carried out as the National Solidarity Project, I met Jim Rogers, the world-renowned investor and advisor of the Universal Peace Federation, at his home in Singapore last March, and was promised a very positive outlook and support.
Respected leaders! Currently, the world is increasingly driven into a world of division and despair due to a fierce struggle for supremacy centered on the great powers. The realization of a world of permanent peace is impossible due to national egoism. In addition, a great shift in values is impossible with only human-centered wisdom. Now is the time for all of us to unite for a “divine unified world” in which coexistence, co-prosperity, and public justice are realized through “continental solidarity” beyond the national boundaries.
In that sense, I pray that today’s summit will become a valuable starting point for the continental solidarity for a divinely unified world.
Lastly, this year marks the 80th birthday of Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon. I would like to congratulate and applaud Dr. Moon, who has devoted her whole life as the Mother of Peace to a world of permanent peace. Thank you.
To go to the Peace Summit 2023 Schedule page, click here.