[Editorial] Hopefully a Turning Point for the Peninsula

The events commemorating the fifth anniversary of the June 15 Joint Declaration have begun in Pyongyang with 40 government and 295 private representatives from the South. The Southern delegation has a busy schedule. It has already participated in the opening ceremony and a welcome dinner, on Wednesday will participate in a "national unification gathering" and a "celebratory performance," and on Thursday it will break off into small groups for separate gatherings.

The reason the festival in Pyongyang is particularly meaningful is because it is the first time in a long time that a private group or a government delegation led by Unification Minister Chung Dong Young has visited the North. The window of inter-Korean dialogue has been thrown open after almost 10 months since it came to a halt. If this opportunity is put to use it could be the turning point that transforms the political situation on the Korean peninsula, cloudy because of the North Korean nuclear issue, into a time where the spirit of national reconciliation and peace overflows.

The government delegation includes, among others, former unification ministers Lim Dong Won, Park Jae Kyu, and Jeon Se Hyun as advisors. Those men were deeply involved in the summit five years ago and the June 15 Joint Declaration, and their participation makes the delegation more important. The North's delegation is headed by Kim Ki Nam, secretary of the central committee, which elevates it in status. Other key Northerners include Lim Dong Ok, deputy head of the North's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, and Chon Kum Jin, duty advisor to the North's cabinet. It looks like deep dialogue at a considerably high level will be possible.

On Thursday Unification Minister Chung Dong Young is scheduled to pay a formal visit to Kim Yong Nam, chairman of the North's Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, but one cannot rule out the possibility that there will be an audience with National Defence Commission Chairman Kim Jong Il. Even if there is no meeting with chairman Kim it will still be possible to have frank and meaningful discussion because key players from North and South with considerable influence will be meeting several times.

Presidents Roh Moo Hyun and George W. Bush met a few days ago and reaffirmed the principle of resolving the North Korean nuclear issue peacefully and diplomatically, and that more reason why this opportunity must be taken to make tangible progress on peace on the peninsula. Progress in intra-Korean dialogue and solving the nuclear issue must happen in harmony and one must promote the other. The North must engage in frank discussion with the South, so that among other things it is able to feel reassured and make the "strategic decision" to give up its nuclear plans and participate in the six-party talks. The government delegation must focus on conveying what was said off the record between Roh and Bush and help the North come to the talks without excessive suspicion or fear.

The June 15 Joint Declaration proclaimed by former president Kim Dae Jung and chairman Kim Jong Il five years ago was a historical event in which the leaders of North and South agreed to the principle of independent reunification of the Korean nation and sought points of agreement about unification proposals. It was a pledge to put an end to the history of confrontation and hostility and begin a new era of reconciliation and cooperation. Though there would later be "misunderstanding" about Sunshine policy and factors threatening the situation on the peninsula such as increased conflict between the North and the United States because of the nuclear issue, but it is still a fact that North and South were somehow able to begin developing mutual confidence. The private delegation is in Pyongyang to sing of national harmony because of the earnest wish for national reconciliation and reunification.

When the current festivities in Pyongyang are over there will be ministerial talks in Seoul, on June 21. If North and South meet often and speak from the heart it will be possible to remove the war clouds that surround the peninsula. The South can assume the central role in constructively resolving the issue of what the North is demanding of the US in exchange for giving up its nuclear weapons, namely a security guarantee and economic support. One hopes the "important proposal" the government is working on should the North return to the six-party process has a substantial effect.

North and South are meeting for the first time in truly a long time and so we hope there is frank discussion with substantial results. They must find points that can be wisely pursued to overcome the nuclear crisis which is weighing down on the future of the Korean nation.

The Hankyoreh, 15 June 2005.

[Translations by Seoul Selection (PMS)]