12th DMZ International Peace Symposium
Participants of the Symposium agreed that not only should the importance and value of the DMZ be declared, but measures should be implemented to ensure sustainable development as well. It was stressed that we should distance ourselves from past dichotomies, like Conservation versus Development. Instead, it was argued, a third way must be found that enables citizens in the border regions and the entire nation to develop.
Dr Bernhard Seliger, representative of the HSF Korea, stressed that Korea needs a mid- and long-term eco-friendly plan for preserving the ecological values of the DMZ. The DMZ in Korea is a unique ecosystem, Dr Seliger explained, and its environment and nature should be conserved well. As a comparison, he showed how in the German Green Belt (Grünes Band), tall buildings and infrastructure (roads and railways) are kept at a minimum until today.