제주평화연구원

  [caption id="" align="alignright" width="150"] PARK Jin
Former Chairman of the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification Committee Chair Professor in UPEACE Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies[/caption]

I have always loved beautiful Jeju Island. It’s a treasure island, featuring a peaceful coexistence of man and nature. I was in Jeju on my honeymoon decades ago, and I remember falling deeply in love with its splendid scenery, its amazing traditional cusine, and the warm hospitality of its residents. Jeju has since then become a frequent destination of mine, be it for business or for pleasure, and on these trips I would often reflect on Jeju’s potential and vision for the future.

Simply put, Jeju is an island of peace. In Jeju you cannot but feel a serene calmness wash over you or feel humbled in the wondrous presence of mother nature. Koreans may take Jeju for granted, but foreign tourists gawk in awe at the UNESCO-designated Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes and its other mystical beauties. Mt. Halla, a volcanic mountain soaring high and proud, with its appearance changing dramatically from season to season, serves as the spiritual “guardian” of the island meanwhile, breathtaking blue seas stretching endlessly around Jeju symbolize the island’s dynamism and open-mindedness. Jeju Haenyeo (female divers), one of Jeju’s greatest cultural legacies, signify the strength of Korean women as well as the islanders’ love for the ocean.

Moreover, Jeju is a global city. Conveniently located at the center of Northeast Asia, Jeju is a free international city whose traditions and future-oriented aspirations coexist: its tourism, education and health care services are in harmony with clean energy and high-tech industries. The area within a 1,200km radius of the three-country triangle region – linking the attractive Jeju Island, Japan, and China – is heavily populated with seven hundred million people, including five megacities, each boasting more than 10 million residents. Jeju’s geographical location at the heart of Northeast Asia renders it a natural choice for international transport and tourism hub. Besides, Jeju Island houses many economic and cultural exchanges between Korea, China, and Japan. My love for Jeju grows every time I come here for the annual Jeju Forum as moderator of panel discussions attended by world leaders. Jeju Island is not exclusive to Jeju Islanders or Koreans it is a global island for the world that is visited and cherished by all.

Considering that the United Nations is an intergovernmental organization dedicated to world peace, I thought it appropriate that a UN agency be established on this Island of Peace. As UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon emphasized in his congratulatory remarks at the 11th Jeju Forum this May, Jeju has a constructive role to play in pursuit of Asian and world peace.

I understand that the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) is currently considering the possibility of setting up its Asia-Pacific office in Jeju. Additionally, I believe it would be a good idea for Korea, as home country of UN Secretary-General Ban, to establish and operate the proposed Asia-Pacific Center for United Nations Peace Operations (a provisional name) in Jeju, the symbol of world peace in Northeast Asia. Working in tandem with NGOs and the China-Japan-Korea Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat based in Seoul, the new organization will have massive potential to help Jeju and Korea contribute to world peace and prosperity.