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Special Report |
LAST UPDATE April 25, 2006
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| April 14, 2006 |
The Peace and Green Boat – Kang Hey-Jung |
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| Sign displaying the upcoming 57th voyage of Peace and Green Boat. |
Over sixty years have passed since Japan’s occupation of Korea but the relationship between the two nations continues to be strained. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s annual visit to Yasukuni shrine, dedicated to imperial Japan’s war dead including war heroes, has outraged much of East Asia,as has the government approval and popularization of textbooks that hide Japan’s war crimes during World War II. On the other side, some Japanese scholars claim that Korea’s national textbooks contain biased information regarding Japan. Such recent controversies have proven to be challenging for Japan-Korea relations. As trade and cultural exchange continues to progress between the two nations, it is becoming more imperative that they work towards greater cooperation and mutual understanding.
Peace Boat is collaborating with a Korean organization, the Green Foundation, to build new bridges between the two cultures. An environmental advocacy group, the Green Foundation promotes educational and cultural activities such as environmental film festivals and eco-concerts. In August of 2005, the two organizations each brought 300 participants from their respective countries on a historic voyage around East Asia. Just a few days before the 60th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II, the participants boarded the Fujimaru vessel for a two-week journey. Starting in Tokyo, they traveled to Busan, Inchion, Dan Dong, Shanghai, Okinawa, and Nagasaki before returning home. The two organizations have committed to do ten years of cultural-exchange voyages.
Activities onboard the Peace and Green Boat voyage (Peace Boat’s 50th voyage) included playing recreational games, seminar discussions on the importance of Article 9 of the Japanese constitution, a trip to a Korean Atomic Bomb victims center, and meeting with Korean women activists fighting for sexual slavery recognition. With over 20 guests from Japan and another 40 from Korea, various musicians, politicians, journalists and scholars provided lasting hour of fun entertainment and invigorating discourse. |
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| Kang Hey-Jung enjoying the sun out on deck. |
Joining us from Yokohama to Da Nang, Kang Hey-Jang from the Green Foundation presented an informational session about the upcoming Peace and Green Boat voyage: the 57th Peace Boat voyage. As the cruise director of the 57th voyage, she shared that the voyage will depart in December 2006 from Hakata, making its way to Hong Kong, Viet Nam, Philippines, and Busan. |
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| Toshio Matsumura showing off the t-shirt he received from the 50th voyage of Peace and Green Boat. |
There are currently 10 passengers onboard that 53rd voyage that participated in the maiden Peace and Green Boat voyage. At the informational session, Toshio Matsumoto, Peace Boat veteran participant, said, “The 50th voyage of Peace and Green Boat was the best voyage I’ve been on.” The two-week intensive cultural exchange activities of Peace and Green Boat allowed him to form deep connections with the Korean people unlike any previous voyages he had participated in. “The Koreans were always involved in various onboard activities. I was impressed by their energy,” said Fukue Imori, a returning participant. She strongly urged people to participate in the upcoming voyage. |
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| Peace Boat Staff Cho Jin-Hye plays the piano as Kang Hey-Jung leads the audience in a Korean sing-along. |
The other participants from the 50th voyage shared similar sentiments, saying that they made lasting relationships with their new Korean friends. In the true spirit of the 50th voyage, the informational session ended with all participants singing a Korean song about peace and harmony. |
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