The National YWCA of Korea, which celebrates its 100th anniversary, held the YWCA Women’s Peace Pilgrimage and Forum at Paju Publishing Complex and Imjingak Peace Nuri Park for two days on July 6th and 7th.
On July 6th, the YWCA International Peace Forum, themed “Peace that Women make: How can we make it sustainable?” was led by Eun-young Lee, Vice Chairperson of National YWCA of Korea. Starting with a keynote address on the same theme by Professor Sung-kyung Kim from University of North Korean studies, the forum aimed to establish a discourse on the peace solidarity of women worldwide including Ukraine, Palestine, Japan, and Korea addressing current issues threatening the international community.
The International Women’s Peace Forum became an event with over 300 participants, including approximately 150 participants who accessed Zoom through global webinar pre-registration, as well as on-site participants, including YWCA activists and 100 members of the 2022 Peace Pilgrimage.
Professor Sung-kyung Kim stated, “Since the signing of the armistice agreement on July 27th, 1953, the Cold War has been ongoing on the Korean Peninsula for 70 years. In the midst of this, women from the North and South Korea have experienced the convoluted history of colonization, war, division, and decolonization firsthand. Despite being victims of the male-centric social structure of patriarchy, they have suffered in silence as they couldn’t voice their experiences as peace actors” She emphasized, “It is crucial to approach anew the history of war and division among North and South Korean women from a feminism perspective, actively involving women in peace discussions. Addressing gender discrimination and violence embedded in daily life is essential to break free from the oppression of the patriarchal societal structure.”
Following the keynote address, the first panel featured Alloyna Provydencheva, a practitioner joining the webinar from war-torn Ukraine, expressing the difficulties and perplexities during the war and appealing for peace solidarity and support for Ukraine.
Amal Tarache, General Secretary of Palestine YWCA, presented on the peace activities of Palestinian women amid the Israeli governance situation. She highlighted the ongoing challenges and obstacles, such as geographical separation and restrictions on movement after the dismantling of the apartheid wall following the periods of the first and second Intifadas (Palestinian uprisings in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank). She introduced Palestine YWCA’s international campaign supporting the return and self-determination of Palestinian refugees who suffered ethnic cleansing during the Nakba (catastrophe in Arabic: referring to the founding of Israel in 1948) and how the campaign has gained support from YWCAs worldwide, donors, and global advocates for Palestinian human rights.
Saya Higuchi, Vice Chairperson of Japan YWCA, in the third presentation, shared that since its establishment in 1905, Japan YWCA has focused on peace movements after the end of the Asia-Pacific War. She enunciated the adoption of a resolution titled “Apology for the Asia-Pacific War and Resolution for World Peace” in 2009. Additionally, she discussed their efforts in upholding the spirit of peace and non-militarism stated in Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution in response to the recent intensified movement to amend the constitution.
The final presentation, titled ‘Peace Activities and Perspectives of Korean Peninsula Women’ by Sook-jin Lee, a commissioner of the YWCA Y Academy, highlighted YWCA’s peace movements since the 1980s, including the ‘Peace Forum on the Streets’ and the recent six-year-long ‘YWCA Women’s Peace Pilgrimage: From Halla to Baekdu,’ aimed at healing the pain of division and paving the way for peace.
To address the tasks of the ‘Korean Peninsula Ceasefire Peace Campaign’ with 380 domestic and international organizations, activities such as Peace Challenge, Peace Monday street campaigns, and member YWCA Korea education were implemented. The resolution on ‘Ceasefire and Peace Agreement on the Korean Peninsula and Appeal for Support for North Korean Women,’ passed overwhelmingly at the World YWCA General Assembly in Johannesburg (2019). Through this, it confirmed the support and solidarity of YWCAs from 108 countries, continuing the alliance of women for peace on the Korean Peninsula and worldwide.
In the final session of questions and general discussion, participants upheld the need for women’s comprehensive participation at all decision-making levels in conflict resolution and peace-building processes worldwide. This became a moment to reaffirm the commitment to bear the duty of women as agents of peace until the day when human security becomes an everyday reality.
