The NUAC Gyeonggi Provincial Assembly (vice-chairperson: Park Hae-jin) successfully held the “Peaceful Unification Concert 2016” on September 28, 18:30 at the Gyeonggi Arts Center Grand Theater, with around 1,500 participants including NUAC council members, local residents, and North Korean Refugees.

Held for the second time following the concert last year, the Peaceful Unification Concert was held to pass the 71 years of division and for national unity and spread of nationwide sympathy toward unification.

This day’s concert started with the opening speech of NUAC Gyeonggi Provincial Assembly Vice-chairperson Park Hae-jin and congratulatory remarks by NUAC Secretary General Kwon Tae-oh, followed by performances of Tae Jin-ah, Song Dae-kwan, Bae Il-ho, and Gyeonggi Boys & Girls Choir under the themes “Japanese occupation period,” “Korean War after the 1945 Liberation of Korea,” and “Hope for peaceful unification and South Korea in the World.”

“Gyeonggi-do Province will become an important strategic location in terms of administrative, security, and economic development after the unification; the peaceful unification concert, which is the act of looking back at the past and preparing for the upcoming future of unification, itself has a huge meaning,” Vice-chairperson Park Hae-jin said during the interview after the opening ceremony and events.

In addition, he emphasized that the peaceful unification concert is not simply a musical but a special concert that talks about our recent history over the past 100 years and not only seeks to share in the joys and sorrows of the Korean people but also to spread the message to the people that we need to play a leading role in preparing for unification.

NUAC Secretary General Kwon Tae-oh, who attended the concert, said during his congratulatory speech that South Korea was made with the blood, sweat, and effort of our patriotic martyrs. “There lies a task for us who are living in this era — to overcome the separation of North and South and realize peaceful unification. Unification will provide both the residents of the North and the South with peace and prosperity and will also significantly contribute to the peaceful development of Northeast Asia,” he explained.

He went on to add that it is a time when we are in need of gathering of public opinion and public unity. “I hope that the songs that we sing together today will give hope and courage to all of the people and serve as the echo of hope that brings the first year of unification after 71 years of separation,” he said.