'North Korean Defectors, Warm Neighbors, Sing Oneness' Music & Talk Concert

The PUAC Gyeongnam Provincial Assembly (Vice Chair Chung Young-no) held a music and talk concert titled "North Korean Defectors, Warm Neighbors, Sing Oneness" at Gaon Hall of Changwon National University on May 30. The event was organized to fulfill the role of the PUAC to embrace North Korean defectors, which was emphasized by the president at the January cabinet meeting. 

The part one music concert expressed North Korean defectors’ pain and desire for reunification in music. A total of 10 performances, whose theme was unification, were presented, including the musical 'That Day, We', 'Yellow Wind', 'Lonely Island', and '2023 Unification Hope Children’s Song Contest.’

The part two talk concert included a panel discussion. Kim Sung-ryul, an instructor at Korea Institute for National Unification; Lee Do-hee, a TV influencer with Do-hee TV; and Kim Soo-ah, a lecturer on unification and security at the Ministry of National Defense, participated as North Korean defector panelists. Joining them were expert panelists Lee Ki-wan, secretary general of the Gyeongnam Unification Education Center; Chung Han-beom, a professor at the National Defense University; and Hwang Ki-sik, head of the Youngnam Leading University for Unification Education.

In the talk concert, the participants freely shared their opinions. They included agreement on the lyrics and themes of the songs played in the part one music concert, the need to be interested in North Korean defectors’ stable settlement in South Korean society, the need to recognize the difficulties that women defectors face in the process of defection considering the fact that most of the defectors are women, and the need to establish mentor-mentee relationships between PUAC members and North Korean defectors. 

The Gyeongnam Provincial Assembly will continue to strive to promote understanding of and smooth communication with North Korean defectors so that they can fulfill their social obligations in our society.