The first meeting of NUAC for the New Year was held on Jan. 6 at the NUAC Secretariat, with 220 council members in Seoul region, Vice-chairpersons of municipal chapters, and executive committee members in attendance.

Hyun said at the New Year greeting ceremony that national unification and strengthening of the economy are the two key policies of the Park Geun-hye’s government, and that the National Unification Advisory Council (NUAC) with its long history and tradition should lead the preparation for unification.

“I appreciate very much the efforts of all the members of the 16th NUAC for the past one and half year. We should bring lots of national unification projects to a successful conclusion,” he said.

According to him, 2015 is the 70th anniversary of liberation of Korea and division of the Korean peninsula into north and south. Korean people have been suffering from the agony of division for almost one century, so now is the time to overcome the problem with our utmost efforts, he added.

Hyun noted that 2014 was an epochal year in the journey to national unification with the “Unification Bonanza” and “Diplomacy of Trust.” He added that President Park’s promotion of the unification movement as one of the most important goals of her government provided great encouragement and strength for NUAC.

Hyun also talked about the human rights issue of North Korea, which was adopted as an official agenda of the UN Security Council. He stressed that international societies are now aware of the issue, which can no longer be ignored thanks to the diverse activities of NUAC with regard to the human rights problem in North Korea. The improvement of human rights for people in North Korea means laying a cornerstone for national unification. Finally, he asked the council members to put in more efforts for the issue including the legislation of the North Korean Human Rights Act by the national assembly of Korea.

With only 6 months left in the tenure of the 16th NUAC members, Hyun urged them to obtain tangible results of the unification movement for the remaining period by making use of the activities performed for the past one and a half year.

220 participants including Vice-chairpersons of municipal chapters, executive committee members, and central council members attended the ceremony, which started with a national courtesy. It was followed by ▲ a New Year message by Hyun, Vice-chairperson of NUAC, ▲ greetings by Park Chan-bong, Secretary General of NUAC, and ▲ Toast to the New Year and national unification and photo time.

“Since 2015 is the 70th year since division of the country into two, our roles are more important than ever. The secretariat is ready to provide council members and executive committee members with what they need to concentrate on preparing for the peaceful unification of the Korean Peninsula,” Park said in his greetings.

The Vice-chairpersons of municipal chapters and executive committee members of NUAC cut the rice cake of “Trust, First Year of National Unification” with Hyun Kyung-dae, Executive Vice-chairperson of NUAC. Lee Young-sook, Vice-chairperson of the Busan Municipal Chapter, and Jwa Seung-hee, chief of the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs, delivered short speeches for the toast. The attendants happily exchanged New Year’s blessings among themselves.