The 2016 America Council Youth Conference was held for 3 days from November 11 to 13 at the Hilton Garden Inn Hotel in Miami under the supervision of the Miami Chapter.
Group photo of participants to the 2016 America Council Youth Conference
This conference was held under the topic "Unification Made by Youth" and participated in by 67 youth council members from 19 countries including not only the US, Canada, and Central and South America regions affiliated with the America Provincial Assembly but also China, Japan, South Africa, and Busan. It featured expert guest lectures, sectional discussions, and youth activity presentations.
Executive Vice-chairperson Yoo Ho-yeol giving a keynote presentation
"While our greatest mission is to achieve the peaceful unification of our country, since the external and internal circumstances of the Korean peninsula are making it harder to achieve peaceful unification, there are three main missions for the peaceful unification of the Korean peninsula," Executive Vice-chairperson Yoo Ho-yeol said in his keynote presentation.
According to him, as the first mission, achieving dominant peaceful unification requires realizing North Korean nuclear renunciation and denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, and efforts toward North Korean nuclear renunciation through cooperation with the international community cannot be put off. The help of overseas council members is required to gain such cooperation, he added.
Talking about the second mission, he stressed that various kinds of information must flow into North Korea for material change within North Korea, and that such efforts are ongoing. “It is meaningful that legal support for our government to carry out binding actions was established through the enforcement of the North Korean Human Rights Act last September. There is a need for civilian-government collaboration to continue to strengthen the efforts to transform North Korea," he added.
As for the third mission, he noted that, although there are some generations uninterested in unification, the will toward unification must be united into one centered on the younger generation. “When the will of the leaders of unification is consolidated, the perception by surrounding countries including China can be changed, and peaceful unification can be accomplished," he explained.
Opening address by Chapter Head Steve Seo
In his opening address, Miami Chapter Head Steve Seo expressed hope that this conference serves as a foothold for continuously sharing ideas by strengthening the capabilities of American region youth council members and gathering their ideas on unification as well as establishing a network.
Congratulatory address by Kim Seong-jin, Consul General of the Republic of Korea in Atlanta
Kim Seong-jin, Consul General of the Republic of Korea in Atlanta, who also participated in the opening ceremony of the Youth Conference, said that he is promoting policies and diplomacy based on principles so that North Korea renounces nuclear arms and comes out to the road toward change. He urged the next-generation NUAC council members to take interest in the security policy of the Korean peninsula, consolidate the capabilities of the Korean community within the US to publicize the policy of peaceful unification to the mainstream American society, and work to gather support and cooperation for the unification of the Korean peninsula.
Congratulatory address by Kim Ki-chol, Vice-chairperson of the Council of America
"By knowing why we are doing something and having a clear goal, we can know what we have to do. NUAC youth council members should foster a firm sense of purpose and work hard to develop further the foundation that their predecessors have prepared," said Kim Ki-chol, Vice-chairperson of the Council of America.
Special lecture by Kim Jin-kuk, council member of the Washington DC Chapter
For the expert guest lecture, Kim Jin-kuk, council member of the Washington DC Chapter, gave a lecture on the topic "How do the North Korean policy of the American government and influx of information change North Korea?" Next, Mark Kim, a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, lectured on "Korea-US relations after the American election." On the other hand, Lee Hyeon-seo, a North Korean defector and author of “The Girl with Seven Names,” talked about the "Reality of dictatorship and human rights violation by the Kim family in North Korea and human rights violation of North Korean defectors in China.”
Special lecture by Mark Kim, member of the Virginia House of Delegates
Lecture by North Korean defector Lee Hyeon-seo
View of sectional discussion and presentation
Aside from this, discussions and presentations were held by dividing into 3 sections regarding unification preparations by the youth.
Agreement ceremony on sisterhood relationship with the Busan Provincial Assembly Youth Committee
In addition, an agreement ceremony on sisterhood relationship was held between the Busan Provincial Assembly Youth Committee and the Miami Chapter, which promised to have exchanges and hold unification activities together.
On the other hand, Executive Vice-chairperson Yoo Ho-yeol attended the “Korean War Veterans Monument Unveiling Ceremony” held in Veterans Park in Southwest Florida and gave words of encouragement to the veterans.
المجلس الإستشاري الوطني للوحدة
المجلس الإستشاري الوطني للوحدة
