Korea unification?

■■KOREAN RE-UNIFICATION AND GLOBAL PEACE ■■■■■■By Admiral L.Ramdas

INTRODUCTION

The timing of this conference could not have been more appropriate when viewed in the context of the dramatic changes the world has experienced since the Republican President assumed office in the United States. It is indeed an irony, that just when the world had acclaimed the great initiative taken by President Kim Dae Jung to hold the summit with his counterpart from North Korean ■ President Kim Jong II, in Pyongyang in June 2000, that many negative developments, initiated by the USA should arise. The list is impressive and includes, the Republican veto to the CTBT, the reservations regarding the Korean Peace initiative, the changes sought to the ABM treaty, opting out of the Kyoto Treaty, or walking out of the Biological and Chemical weapons treaty.

The legacy of World War II and the Cold War created the unfortunate division of Korea into North and South Koreas. These nations have been pawns in the hands of the Super Powers, and have, as a consequence, paid a very heavy price politically, economically and socially. It is therefore very tragic that brinkmanship and meddling■ by the more powerful neighbours has continued to plague the basic human desire for re-unification and reconciliation in Korea.

Militarisation and nuclearisation have been among the main causes for concern and excuses for some to rationalise and justify their own programmes like the NMD Policy of the United States of America.

We shall attempt to look at the developments in the Korean Peninsula in a global context, and see how it impacts international peace movements and global peace at large.

GLOBAL PEACE IN THE SOUTH ASIAN CONTEXT

We in South Asia have faced somewhat similar adversarial situations between India and Pakistan as you have had between the two Koreas, and for almost the same duration. The problem of India - Pakistan relations have resulted in three wars between us, none of which have made any changes to the basic situation of hostility. Unlike in your case where you have a Demilitarized zone ■ we have a `live■ Line of Control ■ especially in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Many joint declarations of good intent have been agreed to by both countries, for example the Tashkent Declaration of 1965, the Shimla Agreement of 1972, and the Lahore Declaration in 1999 ■ all of which had reaffirmed the determination on the part of both nations to resolve all their bi-lateral issues only through peaceful means.

Unfortunately, in real life, the experience has been anything but peaceful. This has been largely due to the absence of any joint implementation or monitoring team which could have ensured that commitments made in the agreements entered into bilaterally would be faithfully implemented.

Appreciating the lack of progress in bilateral understanding and a genuine desire for peace on the part of the Governments concerned, peoples movements have re-emerged with greater vigour and vitality in the last decade or so, especially in India and Pakistan. Many groups like the PIPFPD, the CNDP, the PPC, WIPSA, APA, IPSI, WISCOMP, SAFHR, HRCP, have all, separately and collectively, gathered strength and momentum, in putting forward their demands for peace.

Just a few days before the recently held Summit Meeting between President Musharraf of Pakistan and Prime Minister Vajpayee of India, a Pak India Peoples Solidarity Conference was held in New Delhi on 12 July 2001. This meeting brought together representatives of over two hundred different groups from both India and Pakistan who managed to agree on a Joint Declaration highlighting basically the need for abolishing Nuclear Weapons, Restoration and strengthening of Democracy, and the Important issue of the future of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and its people. This was a powerful gathering which undoubtedly made quite an impact. For the first time in our history, there was a parallel Peoples Meeting which more or less coincided with the Summit. Staging of such an event was possible only because of the steady work that Peoples Peace Movements have been carrying out for over a decade. In the long run there is little doubt that this is the only way that the leadership at the highest levels of Government can be persuaded to translate the wishes of the people for peace into action.

There are other matters of concern in the South Asian region, namely the ethnic conflict between Tamils and Sinhalas in Sri Lanka; the Gorkha problem in Bhutan; and other turbulent issues which have affected the domestic policies and politics of both Nepal and Bangla Desh. The fact that India and Pakistan have both acquired nuclear weapons has made the region that much more susceptible to being considered a potential flashpoint in the global security paradigm.

EAST ASIA AND THE PACIFIC

Moving away from South Asia for a moment, let us look at the situation here in East Asia. The demonstrated missile capability of North Korea which is also assessed to possess enough weapons grade plutonium for about six nuclear warheads, has also created a lot of concern in the international community. This is stoked mainly by the United States of America which has used North Korea as justification for its NMD and TMD programmes. This development has very definitely affected, and to an extent retarded, the re-unification and reconciliation process between the two Koreas. Clearly the NMD Project has been motivated mainly as a `payback■ to the Military Industrial Complex of the US ■ which had invested over three billion dollars during the recent US presidential elections. **(Glenn Ford ■ MP European Parliament). This bogey of North Korea identified as a `rogue state■ by the US, has been used more as a cover to negate the Chinese ICBM capabilities.

CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR JOINT ACTION

Notwithstanding the tremendous pressure being brought to bear by powerful nations in the W. Pacific, the peoples of the two Koreas have an inherent right to their destiny. The process of reconciliation and re-unification must be taken forward to its logical conclusion despite the visible and hidden challenges that confront them. In making this process easier, it would be necessary for all like minded International Peace Movements to join hands in support of your cherished goal. There is no power on earth which can come in the way of the peoples genuine desire for peace.

ROAD MAP TO PEACE

We need therefore to evolve a possible road map for establishing a good network amongst various civil society groups in the Asian Region to exert moral pressure on our leadership, while at the same time establishing a phalanx of resistance against interference by any non-regional external powers.

Demand for abolition of all nuclear weapons and missiles Joint / international land mine clearing operation in the DMZ and adjacent areas Release of Prisoners, both military and political, held in North and South Korea Normalize relations and restore cultural and trade ties. Rehabilitation of all those affected by ravages of conflict ■ especially women and children Work out a draft schedule to effect re-unification in the next five years Set up an International team of Observers authorized by the UN to oversee the above recommendations Facilitate travel and meetings by relations and friends from both sides during the interim till such time as full re-unification is achieved. Networking by civil society groups on an international level to further the objectives of reconciliation and re-unification of Korea Effect Mutually Balanced Force Reductions till Reunification.