Bangkok, Thailand—UPF held one of its largest Asian Leadership Conferences (ALCs) with 67 participants from six nations from May 19 to 22, 2017. Twenty-one participants came from the Philippines, 12 from Indonesia, 13 from Myanmar, 10 from Cambodia, seven from Vietnam and four from Thailand. “Providing Vision and Leadership for Nation-building and Peace” was the theme of the four-day conference.
The Myanmar delegation included 10 current members of parliament; the Indonesian delegation, two former members of parliament, who will be appointed as the convenors of the International Association of Parliamentarians for Peace (IAPP)-Indonesia; and the Cambodia delegation, government officials from various ministries. Also among the participants were school principals and professors, as well as two vice rectors and four Christian ministers.
Dr. Chung Sik Yong gave a presentation on becoming an effective peacemaker, and Mr. Hajime Saito and Mr. Kamol Thananopavarn highlighted UPF’s activities in Asia.
During the Q&A session, one Vietnamese participant said he was moved by the following words of UPF Founder Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon: “I have dedicated my life to building bridges of peace between countries that hated each other and consider each other enemies because of ideologies and religion.” Many of the participants asked UPF to hold events in their countries presenting the same content as the content presented in the conference.
The event concluded with the appointment of new Ambassadors for Peace and reflections. One Filipino participant suggested his government replace their sex education programs, which includes the free distribution of condoms in schools, with abstinence before marriage.