On April 27th, Kim Dae-jung, the former president of the Republic of Korea , spoke through a translator to an overflowing crowd of students and community members about the future of relations on the volatile Korean peninsula. The main dining room of the Stanford Faculty Club offered standing room only on Thursday night and was five people deep in some places.

Former Secretary of Defense William Perry initiated the talk by detailing Kim Dae-jung’s political life and his life-long activism in the name of democratic government. In 1961, Dae-jung was elected to Parliament only three days before it was disbanded by Major General Park Chung Hee’s military coup. Two years later, Dae-jung was elected to the National Assembly and emerged as a leader of the Democratic Party. In 1971 he ran as a presidential candidate against the authoritarian regime of Park Chung Hee and secured 46% of the vote in a losing effort.

From this time onward, Dae-jung was subject to exile, numerous prison sentences, and house arrest. He was the target of multiple assassination attempts, including an abduction by the Korean Central Intelligence agency from a Tokyo hotel in 1973. In 1987 he was finally cleared of all previous charges and was allowed to run for president. He lost in 1987 and 1992 before winning in 1997 in an election which marked the first transition in Korean government from the ruling party to the opposition party. In 2000, Dae-jung worked with the North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in a groundbreaking summit to ease tensions and work towards reunification on the Korean peninsula. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize that same year for his efforts to reconcile the two countries.

Dae-jung spoke at length on his summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in 2000 and the future of relations on the Korean Peninsula . He began by saying that tensions on the peninsula had eased dramatically since the agreement between the two nation’s leaders to work towards reunification, saying that, “warm rays of sunshine” have replaced “the icy-winds of the Cold War.” He pointed to an increase in exchange of trade, sports, and tourism and noted that over a mil- lion people have traveled between the North and South since the inter-Korean summit.

Dae-jung emphasized the importance of increased contact between the two countries in working towards peace and reconciliation. He said that prior to such contact North Koreans were isolated from the outside world and viewed the South as a puppet of the imperialistic United States . These feelings of distrust and fear have been replaced by feelings of envy and gratitude toward South Korea , Dae-jung said. He went on to say that the “most decisive factor” in the shift of public sentiments in the North was “humanitarian and economic aid” from the South. Dae-jung cited these gestures of good will, including 400,000 tons of rice a year and 200,000 tons of fertilizers, as opening the door to other South Korean exports such as pop music and soap operas, cultural novelties that continue to bridge the cultural divide of the two countries.

However, he stated that for progress to continue the North Korean nuclear issue must be resolved. He offered his suggestion for the resolution of the nuclear issue, saying that North Korea must completely abandon its nuclear program while the United States in return must provide security guarantees and lift economic sanctions. Furthermore, he argued that because of the mistrust between the two countries, the two policies should be implemented simultaneously. He stated that the situation had worsened in the first four years of the Bush administration during which North Korea withdrew from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and expelled international inspectors. The expulsion of the inspectors has meant the loss of valuable information regard­ing nuclear developments in North Korea and he said that wasting more time only aggravated the situation. To stem any further erosion of relations, Dae-jung argued for a “comprehensive give-and-take deal” to prevent prolif­eration and said if no actions are taken South Korea and Japan may attempt to develop their own nuclear weapons which would result in a “nuclear land mine” in northeast Asia . He added that all six members of the current six-party talks dealing with the North Korean nuclear issue agreed that they “must achieve denuclearization to achieve peace and stability.”

Dae-Jung also highlighted the United States ’ role in any negotiations, saying that the U.S. must make wise deci­sions in leading the six-party talk. He emphasized that, although South Kore­ans occasionally criticize the United States ’ policies, they wish to retain an alliance. He argued that U.S. troops were a “necessity” and argued that Korean reunification was in the interest of the United States . He argued that improved transportation of goods from Japan and U.S. companies in northeast Asia to Europe would result in a 30% decrease in transportation costs when shipping is replaced by railroads.

In the following question and answer period, Dae-jung more specifically addressed the issue of reunification and current territorial disputes with the Japanese government over a range of islands. Regarding reunification, he argued that a gradual transition would be needed and said, “we will not hurry.” He said that the increased economic relationships will also play a factor, remarking that “no one fights when two people are making money together.” He spoke forcefully about Japan , saying that the Japanese were ignorant of the past and had not yet apologized for their past injustices. He added that Japan must address these injustices or risk alienating itself from the international community.