PSPD in English Peace/Disarmament 2025-06-06 10540

⭐️Thank you for being with a Peace Rally <Stop Hostility Korea Peace Now!>

80 years of Liberation and Division, 72 years of the Korean War Armistice

Korea Peace Rally with the DMZ Pilgrimage for Life and Peace✨

To mark the 80th anniversary of liberation and division, religious leaders from seven major religions began a 3-week pilgrimage along the 385km DMZ on May 19. They started in Goseong and walked to Paju. Civil society groups advocating for Korea peace and citizens yearning for peace joined the walk. Walking along the DMZ, a symbol of division and separation, they remembered all those who suffered from the devastation of war and the horrific memories of division, as well as those who sacrificed their lives during the era of division. On the final day of the walk, June 6 (Friday), hundreds of citizens from across the country gathered at the Jangsan Observation Post in Paju and walked together to the Peace Bell at Imjingak.

At the Imjingak Peace Bell, the <“Korea Peace Rally with the DMZ Pilgrimage for Life and Peace : Stop Hostility and Korea Peace Now!”> was held. The event featured greetings and speeches by the DMZ Pilgrimage for Life and Peace, a welcoming remark by the co-chair of the Korean Conference of Religions for Peace, a peace prayer by the representative chair, a solidarity speech by the co-representative of the Korea Peace Action, peace messages from residents of border regions, speeches by Kim Dong-yeon, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, and Kim Kyung-il, Mayor of Paju, solidarity messages from international partner organizations of the Korea Peace Action, and performances by the peace performance group Let’s Peace and the music group Chamjota.

If we invest the amount of time and effort that we have spent on hating and suppressing one another in reconciliation and cooperation,
the Korean Peninsula and the world can become a better place.
If we redirect he costs and resources we have spent on purchasing weapons and preparing for war toward dialogue and negotiation,
all residents of the Korean Peninsula could lead safer and more peaceful lives.
We pray in the name of all life on this land.
We demand in the name of the sovereign people of this nation.

Stop hostility and Korea peace Now!
End the Korean War and Korea Peace Now!

Thank you all for joining us! ☮️

Call for Peace on the Korean Peninsula

“Stop Hostility, Korea Peace Now!”

This year marks 80 years since Korea’s liberation from colonial rule. For eight decades, the people of this land have worked tirelessly to build a nation where peace, dignity, and safety are guaranteed. Yet, even today, we continue to struggle to realize a truly peaceful and democratic society.

It has also been 80 years since Korea was divided in the wake of the Cold War. For eight decades, we have lived in a land split in two, with weapons drawn against each other, locked in enmity. And still today, threats of war echo across the peninsula.

On May 19th, 2025, the DMZ Pilgrimage for Life and Peace began its journey at Goseong, on the eastern edge of the Demilitarized Zone. Over the course of nearly 400 kilometers, the pilgrimage has followed the traces of the division to reach this very place, Imjingak in Paju. Led by clergy of the seven major religions in South Korea and joined by citizens willing for peace, we walked to remember all those who have suffered and died in the tragedy of war and division. We walked through the so-called “demilitarized” zone, where live-fire drills never cease, and prayed for peace to dwell on this wounded yet beautiful land.

On May 27th, peace activists from Gangjeong village on Jeju Island also set sail across the sea on the “Boat of Peace,” joining us here on land. Their journey passed through the Han River estuary, one of the few places jointly controlled by North and South Korea, yet currently off-limits to both. Around the Korean Peninsula, the clouds of war are once again gathering over the seas. The waves of conflict rise higher each day. We pray that the Pacific Ocean, whose name means “peaceful”, may truly become a sea of peace, cooperation, and shared humanity.

Today, people from all corners of this country have come together to speak, sing, and act for peace. We know all too well: militarism begets militarism, and hostility breeds more hostility. South Korea spends more than twice North Korea’s total GDP annually on military expenditures, and conducts frequent joint military exercises. And yet, peace feels ever more distant. We seek a different path. Peace is the way. Only through dialogue, mutual respect, and sincere efforts to live together can we ensure the safety and dignity of all people on this peninsula.

The residents of these borderlands now live under constant fear, caught in the crossfire of escalating military tensions. Propaganda loudspeakers blare hatred day and night. Live-fire drills grow ever more aggressive. Accidents and close calls abound. There is not even a basic channel of communication left between the two Koreas. The Inter-Korean Military Agreement has long since lost its efficacy.

We urgently appeal: Stop these dangerous acts of hostility.

If the time, resources, and energy poured into conflict were instead invested in reconciliation and cooperation, the Korean Peninsula and the world could be a more just and peaceful place. The funds allocated to arms and war preparations must now be redirected toward peacebuilding, dialogue, and negotiation. This is the only way all people on the Korean Peninsula can live in safety and hope. In the name of all life that calls this land home, we pray. In the name of the people, we raise our voice.

Cease hostility, choose peace.
End the war, build peace.

June 6, 2025
Participants of the Korea Peace Rally with the DMZ Pilgrimage for Life and Peace