22nd anniversary of the Korean-German Colloquium – 11th Korean-German Colloquium at Sogang University
Keynote by Bishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik of Daejeon
Prof. Park Jong-Gou, President of Sogang University, opened the conference. Prof. Klaus Stüwe, Vice President for International Affairs and Profile Development, during his opening remarks revealed the just-published book of the last Colloquium, which took place 2015 in Eichstätt. The opening address came from Bishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik of Daejeon, President of the Committee for Justice and Peace of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea.
The first presentation was devoted to the concept of solidarity and the meaning of solidarity in a religious sense. Prof. Kim Yonghae, one of the co-directors of the Colloquium, started from historical concepts of solidarity, as found in Buddhism, Confucianism, and in the Western tradition, then compared various types of solidarity, including liberation (from oppression) and welfare. Prof. Michael Casey of Australian Catholic University looked at forms of solidarity and anti-solidarity in modern societies, in particular Australia and the USA, facing challenges like immigration and resulting populism. Finally, Prof. Friedrich Kießling of Catholic University Eichstätt, looked back at the short, but successful history of the West German (and since 1990 all-German) democracy and its relation to social cohesion and solidarity.
The Colloquium was co-founded in 1997 by Prof. Anton Rauscher SJ, head of the Catholic Social Research Center of Mönchengladbach. Since 2005, Catholic University Eichstätt, the only German Catholic University, took over the co-organization of the Colloquium together with Sogang University, a foundation of the Societas Iesu (Jesuits).
Opening remarks by the President of Sogang University, Park Jong-Gou
The second day started with the discussion of financial solidarity in federal states by Prof. Klaus Stüwe, co-director of the Kolloquium and professor of politics in Catholic University Eichstätt. The second presentation by Prof. Donghoon Yang of Sogang University looked at the consequences of the Fourth Industrial Revolution on the Korean labor market. Prof. Klaus Brummer, an expert on international relations, looked into (dwindling) solidarity in the European integration process.
One of the most contentious issues in Korean defense policy vis-à-vis the North Korean nuclear threat is the deployment of THAAD missile defense systems. Prof. Lee Kyu-Young of the Graduate School of International Studies at Sogang University, concluded rather pessimistically that peace in East Asia and, in particular, the Korean Peninsula, would for the foreseeable time remain “cold”, based on military deterrence, not “warm”, based on reconciliation. Finally, the second day of deliberations was concluded with a presentation by Tanja Schorer-Dremel, Member of the Parliament of the Free State of Bavaria, on “children rights in the time of crisis’.
The third and last day of the conference started with the presentation of Dr. Bernhard Seliger, representative of Hanns-Seidel-Foundation in Korea, on solidarity between East and West Germany in times of division and unification. While the state’s response to the challenges of rebuilding East Germany, namely new fiscal equalization schemes like the solidarity tax and solidarity pact, were necessary, really solidarity cannot be commanded by the state, but needs genuine human compassion. Dr. Jinheung Byun, chief researcher of the Northeast Asian Catholic Institute, looked into the possibilities of solidarity as a precondition for reconciliation between North and South Korea.
Prof. Peter Schallenberg, head of the Catholic Centre for Social Science in Mönchengladbach, discussed the development of the German Social Market Economy from the point of view of solidarity detailed in the Papal encyclica “rerum novarum”. Prof. Sunkyung Kang of Sogang University, looked at examples of solidarity in international social work: the case of cooperation projects of Sogang University in Nepal and Ewha Womens University in Cambodia. The last presentation was of Dr. Marius Menke of the Catholic Centre for Social Science, who spoke about the principle of solidarity in the German welfare state. Prof. Yonghae Kim, co-director of the Colloquium, wrapped up the conference, pointing on the many important meanings of solidarity, but their joint grounding in the human compassion and the moral individual. Afterwards, on invitation of Hanns-Seidel-Foundation, a farewell dinner for the conference was given.
In two years, the next Colloquium will again be held in Eichstätt in Germany.