Japan Press Weekly

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2010 December 15 - 21 [JCP]

JCP at ICAPP calls for dialogue for settlement of Korean Peninsula issue

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo, during his speech in Yokohama City on December 9, reported on the activities of the JCP delegation at the International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP), which took place in Phnom Penh from December 1 to 4. The following is his report on what the JCP called for at the ICAPP on the issues facing the Korean Peninsula:

One of the major topics raised at the ICAPP was the issue of peace on the Korean Peninsula. Being held right after the North Korean firing of artillery shells against South Korea, the international conference needed to determine how to respond to this issue.

The ICAPP was attended by party representatives both from South Korea (Grand National Party) and North Korea (Workers’ Party of Korea). It is rare these days for delegates of the two countries to be present at the same international meeting.

A representative of South Korea delivered a harsh criticism of North Korea. A North Korean delegate severely condemned the South Korean speech. The meeting was in a state of tension. Following the speeches by South and North Korean delegates and some other speakers, I took the floor. I made the following remarks regarding this issue.

“Needless to say, we must strictly reject any military provocation in violation of the United Nations Charter. Also, it is important to hold an emergency meeting of the Six-party talks.”

The JCP published a statement strongly condemning North Korea’s military provocation. However, the ICAPP is not a place for political parties with different political stances to criticize each other. It is a place for them to find a common ground to nurture cooperation. Considering this character of the conference, I avoided criticizing North Korea by name and expressed our position by stating that we oppose any “military provocation in violation of the United Nations Charter.” At the same time, I called for parties concerned to immediately sit at a table for negotiations as the best way to resolve the conflict.

On the next day, the South Korean delegation made more remarks fiercely criticizing the North. Under such conditions, the Standing Committee of the ICAPP discussed how to touch on this issue in the Phnom Penh Declaration.

The standing committee’s secretariat told our delegation that it considers our proposal as the only option to enable a breakthrough to be made. We of course agreed and asked the secretariat to compile a declaration in line with what we suggested. We also made a similar proposal to the chairs of the conference.

In the end, the Phnom Penh Declaration included the following statement.

“With respect to the recent provocation and military action in the Korean Peninsula, the ICAPP General Assembly calls on all parties concerned to immediately defuse the situation through dialogue and negotiations. The ICAPP strongly urges the international community to ensure that there is no recurrence of the use of force, in line with the statement of the UN Secretary General on this issue.”

I think this is an appropriate statement reflecting the wisdom and patience of the conference as a whole. It expresses criticism of military provocation without naming a specific state. I believe it is significant for the international meeting, joined by party delegates of both North and South Korea, to confirm the need to have parties concerned sit at a table for dialogue and negotiations.

We were happy to be able to have our position adopted by the conference to include this statement in its declaration. Although it is a conference of political parties, the ICAPP has become the first international meeting joined by both North and South Korean delegates to confirm such a principle.

International disputes can be solved through diplomatic and peaceful means. This is not an idealistic theory but a realizable path if pursued with sincerity. I believe this reflects the real current for peace in Asia and the rest of the world.
- Akahata, December 15, 2010