Reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula: Healing the Wounds of Intergenerational Trauma
Reflection by SeongHan Kim, MCC Representative for Northeast Asia
I never imagined visiting Japan. My grandfather was an independence fighter in Korea, and his suffering under Japanese occupation deeply wounded our family.
In October 2004, half a century after Korea gained independence, I attended the MCC UN Student Seminar in New York City as a student at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. While visiting the UN souvenir shop, I held two flags—one for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK/North Korea), and one for South Korea. Homare Miyazaki, a fellow Japanese student, asked why. I responded angrily, explaining Japan’s role in Korea’s division.
Ironically, Homare was my roommate. That night, we talked for hours. Eventually, he shared a document entitled “Our Confession Concerning the Wartime Responsibility of the Japanese Holiness Church.” He translated it line by line and asked for forgiveness. It was the first sincere apology I had ever received from a Japanese person.
In 2018, I visited Japan for the first time to attend the Christian Forum for Reconciliation in Northeast Asia (also known as the Northeast Asia Reconciliation Initiative or NARI)—co-sponsored by MCC. Today, I work for reconciliation in the region as MCC Representative for Northeast Asia. Homare continues his ministry in Japan.
MCC created a sacred space where former enemies like Homare and I could meet and be transformed. The MCC UN Seminar, now in its 30th year, continues to plant seeds of hope in a broken world.
Looking Forward in Hope
SeongHan’s story sheds light on why the United Nations, now marking its eightieth anniversary, must continue living into its role as global peacebuilding platform. The UN’s New Agenda for Peace, introduced in 2023, states that joint efforts are needed to rebuild trust, strengthen solidarity and deepen international cooperation through diplomacy.1 This could not be truer in Northeast Asia, where UN advocacy has played an important role in MCC’s peace and reconciliation strategies. After more than seventy-five years of division and conflict, the need for a formal peace agreement to end the Korean War remains critical to ensure regional, as well as global security.
In 2023, MCC, alongside The Quaker UN Office, Presbyterian Church (USA), and Global Ministries of the United Methodist Church, created a New York-based Korea Working Group that aims to promote trust-building and peacemaking on the Korean Peninsula. In addition to advocating for constructive diplomacy, MCC is committed to fostering a culture of peace and reconciliation at all levels of society – from daily human interactions to global policymaking forums. Here, the UN office offers space for new conversations and meaningful dialogue.
Since 1995, MCC has worked in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK, also known as North Korea) initially providing humanitarian aid. The program has worked with orphanages, cooperative farms, and more recently, pediatric hospitals and agronomists working to increase local food production. While the Northeast Asia office was originally based in China in the early 2000s, its support for regional peacebuilding programs alongside partners in South Korea began in 2012. These have included long-term partnerships with NARI2 and the Northeast Asia Peacebuilding Institute’s (NARPI) Summer Peacebuilding Training.
MCC’s new initiatives and support for existing partners in Northeast Asia also look forward in the hope to support the next generation of peacebuilders. The Northeast Asia Peace Games simulations3 developed by the American Friend’s Service Committee (AFSC) is one such initiative. Through a hands-on approach, students and civil society practitioners experience negotiation and peacebuilding.
One simulation, focusing on Women, Peace, and Security (WPS), has been conducted in many countries including the US, Mongolia, Japan, and South Korea. This half-day simulation centers on creating a regional action plan at a 2030 Northeast Asia WPS Summit held in Beijing at the request of UN Women on the 30th anniversary of the UN Security Resolution 13254. The government and civil society delegates collaboratively work to draft the plan.
MCC has conducted the simulation several times, including in South Korea and at the 12th NARI Christian Forum. Participants have remarked on how it changes their perspectives. One participant noted, “After playing, I realized how tough it is to represent a country—there are so many factors to consider! Now I’ve learned to really respect and understand their situation better.”
For the next two years, AFSC, with MCC support, will expand the reach of these simulations to other countries, working to educate participants about peacebuilding and human security issues on the Korean Peninsula and wider region.
Reflection by Stacy Nam, MCC Program Director for DPRK
Beyond the United Nations, this year marks other significant eightieth anniversaries. Only days after the US dropped the first atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan surrendered on August 15, 1945, ending its occupation across Asia.
In recent years, I have learned more about my family’s experiences in Hong Kong during World War II. My grandfather tragically became the main income earner when his eldest brother was killed during the Japanese invasion in 1941. My grandfather translated for the Japanese to ensure our family’s survival. After the war, he never spoke another word of Japanese. Today, as part of MCC’s Northeast Asia office, I work to ensure that these wounds are not passed on to future generations.
Legacies of war have scarred multiple generations in various ways, yet stories of survival echo across the world. My hope for the next generation is that we do not harbor these traumas, but instead find ways to heal, diminish division between people, and create spaces for understanding and engagement.
2https://neareconciliation.com/
3For more information email DPRK@afsc.org
or to request a simulation https://forms.office.com/r/1Q0G9FQj9i
4This landmark resolution reaffirms the key role of women in the prevention and resolution of conflicts, peace negotiations, peacebuilding. UN Security Council resolution 1325 on women and peace and security (2000) | UN Women – Headquarters
Banner Image: MCC Northeast Asia leads a Peace Games simulation focused on Women Peace and Security with students in South Korea.