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F. Fakafanua: Address to World Summit 2022, Session VII
Written by Hon. Lord Fatafehi Fakafānua, speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Kingdom of Tonga
Saturday, February 12, 2022
Address to World Summit
February 11-13, 2022
Acknowledgement of the presence of the Almighty God in our midst; our esteemed host—Dr. Hak Jan Han Moon, the Mother of Peace and co-founder of the Universal Peace Federation; H.E. Samdech Techo Hun Sen, prime minister of Cambodia; H.E. Ban Ki-moon, former secretary-general of the United Nations; excellencies; distinguished guests and friends,
I am deeply honored to have been given an opportunity to speak before you at this auspicious World Summit 2022, and bring to you all heartfelt greetings of peace and blessings from the Kingdom of Tonga. Our two countries may be separated by more than 8,000 kilometers of vast ocean, but your vision of peace in your region and for the world has travelled far and wide and ripples right to our shores. We are currently in our fourth week of recovery from one of the largest volcanic eruptions in history; its impact could be felt all around the world. We thank you wholeheartedly for your prayers and support for our small island nation.
I would especially like to acknowledge the late co-founder of the Universal Peace Federation (UPF), Rev. Sun Myung Moon and co-founder Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, the Mother of Peace. UPF is your legacy of peace which unites us all today in our endeavor to achieve world peace. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to UPF for convening the World Summit 2022.
This Summit provides a revolutionary opportunity for us all, as peacebuilders and as leaders. UPF’s unwavering commitment to world peace and peace on the Korean Peninsula has certainly not gone unnoticed while in the midst of layers of crisis and emerging variables all across the globe with the COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions, climate change, natural disasters, poverty, social injustices and more. The resilience of the foundation continues to hold us all at a pivot to continue the legacy of peace as envisioned by UPF’s founders. For that, I highly commend the summit host and co-host for your remarkable efforts to ensure we have this opportunity to dialogue at the Summit.
This Summit’s theme, “Towards Peace on the Korean Peninsula,” is powerful and succinct. As I understand it, peace is not just a destination; it is also the journey. That journey has seen UPF make progress towards this vision since the armistice of the Korean War. All these efforts, every Rally of Hope series, every International Leadership Conference series and every forum series of Think Tank 2022 is a testament to that journey and your dedication to reuniting the Korean Peninsula. It is my sincere hope and prayer that peace will be achieved for the peninsula very soon.
Dr. Moon and UPF, let me assure you that your journey towards peace on the Korean Peninsula is a shared journey and we are here with our support as your global family. The support that UPF has mobilized, evident today with the thousands of expert delegates from all around the world, has already answered the call to the urgent need for innovative vision and bold leadership. No doubt these dialogues will be rich and constructive, and I’m hopeful that this Summit will accelerate the efforts towards peace for the peninsula. As your fellow peacebuilder, I call upon the international community to work together and to continue our efforts to build peace, trust, reconciliation and mutual respect. May these values together with the spirit of compassion guide the deliberations so that the outcomes of the Summit will be transformative and bring sustainable peace and prosperity for Korea and for the world. On that note, I wish you all very fruitful and innovative sessions with my best wishes and blessings.
Malo Aupito. Thank you so much!
To go to the World Summit 2022 Schedule page, click here.