[lssue in] “We Came from Indonesia's National Universities to Korea to Learn about Peace from HWPL”

[Cheonji-ilbo=Yeongji Lee] A group of 11 professors and faculty members of national universities in Indonesia visited South Korea to learn about peace from an NGO associated with the UN Department of Public Information, HWPL (Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light, Chairman Man Hee Lee).

The workshop was for participants recommended by Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta and Universitas Islam Negeri Alauddin Makassar, schools which have respectively signed an MOU with HWPL on designating their universities as HWPL Peace Academies. The HWPL Peace Educators Workshop was a program of three nights and four days from 4 May.

The program was designed to assist universities to integrate the HWPL Peace Education program into their curricula in the coming Fall Semester and to help educators gain a better understanding of HWPL Peace Education.

Earlier in January, during the 26th World Peace Tour of the Peace Delegation that visited four countries in Southeast Asia, HWPL and Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta in Indonesia signed a Peace Academy MOU. The same day, the school named HWPL Chairman Man Hee Lee an honorary chancellor, a sign of high hopes for the HWPL Peace Education program. The university also encouraged other national universities in Indonesia to join the Peace Educators Workshop.

7 May, the reporter sat down with the participants of the workshop in a seminar room at HWPL Jeonbuk Branch Office. In one voice, the participants said HWPL Peace Education is what can bring peace in their home country. But it doesn't stop there. They say global peace can become a reality.

When asked what drove them to travel to Korea, called "a land of division" by some, to learn about peace, instead, they underscored the inspiration they get from the peace works of HWPL. "The very fact that HWPL which started from a divided nation, Korea, was able to bring forth such progress for peace is wonderfully astonishing," said Dr. Ali Munhanif, a political science professor at Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta. "HWPL's peace work takes great significance in the run for ending the war on the Korean Peninsula and for its reunification."

Professor Ali Munhanif also said, "by taking Mr. Lee's purpose and his vision for peace and applying it to individuals, the environment, and governments, I am confident that it is possible to achieve peace solely by the hands of the people without any intervention from the government level or the religious leaders." He stressed, "The peace values presented by HWPL is necessary for realizing the reunification led by the people."

Dr. Zainul Fuad, a social science professor at Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatra Utara, said, "I have always thought that the peace-building methods proposed by HWPL are concrete and feasible," as he marked Chairman Lee's peace work "truly amazing." He went on to say, "There are many peace organizations in the world, but no other organization is as extraordinary and innovative as HWPL."

"I have worked with many different NGOs working in this field for a long time, but I have never seen any group that has brought progress and results as HWPL has done. I would say Mr. Lee's contribution is worth a Nobel Peace Prize."

The participants of the workshop plan to share the content of the peace education program with school and communities. Dr. Barsihannor Zuhri, the Dean of Adab and Humanities Faculty at Universitas Islam Negeri Alauddin Makassar, said, "the workshop served as an opportunity to take one step further in thinking about what peace really is." "I want to share the value of peace presented by HWPL when I return to Indonesia." He said he plans to apply HWPL Peace Education in households and society and to integrate everything he had learned into his lectures.

An organizing staff from HWPL said the workshop is the starting point of HWPL's plans to train educators as Peace Educators for Peace Academies designated according to the MOU signed with universities in Indonesia. "Renowned professors and leaders are coming to Korea to be trained on the theme of peace. I believe that in itself contributes to building a good reputation for Korea as a nation of peace."

HWPL Peace Academies were set up amid the request of leaders at the WARP (World Alliance of Religions' Peace) Summit hosted by HWPL in 2014. As of May 2018, there are 138 schools designated as Peace Academies. Upon designation, all Peace Academies implement the HWPL Peace Education program into their curriculum every semester taught with a textbook on peace published by HWPL.