GWPN Webinar Series 8: “Women Creating Peace” (WFWP Korea)

WFWP Korea hosted the Global Women's Peace Network (GWPN) Webinar Series #8: “Women Creating Peace” on July 13, 2021, and 150 participants joined virtually from around the world. Professor Min-Gyu Kim, a former North Korean defector from Woosuk University, was invited to speak under the theme of “The Bare Face of South Korean Media Dealing with the North Korean News.” Prof. Kim’s lecture focused on the three main points: lack and distortion of North Korea's reality reported in the South Korean media; the identity of North Koreans; and altered socialism.

Prof. Kim described North Korea as a country that opposes religion, but operates under a religious system where the people serve Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Un as gods. He added, "One of North Korea's education methods is that when the child is given even a single candy at school, the teacher tells the student, “this candy was given by the great Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Un so you have to be grateful to them.” This kind of education plants a perception into the child from an early age that “I can eat this candy not because of my parents, but because of them.” Furthermore, he explained that in elementary school, children are taught ritual training to develop a collective spirit, which affects their identity and shifts their value to pursue collective spirit.

To conclude, Prof. Kim stated that "The core of North Korea is not a dictatorship conducted only by Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Un, but a dictatorship conducted by the collective spirit of all the North Koreans. We need to recognize that the problem with North Korea is not something that will be easily solved one day. First, it is most important to have a conversation with each other on the values that both Koreans can share."

The GWPN webinar series will be held every other month. The next webinar is scheduled for September 2021.

Background on GWPN: The Global Women's Peace Network (GWPN) brings together leaders, organizations and governments to solve pressing social issues and secure an environment for equitable human development. Through peace leadership based on the feminine aspect of human nature, GWPN seeks to ensure lasting peace and prosperity for generations to come.