Stay tuned for Pyo Kyung-min's latest K-pop stories, where she digs into the backstories that matter. She’d love to hear from you — share your thoughts at pzzang@koreatimes.co.kr. After all, every article gets better with insights from those who love the scene, just like she does!
GPLC 2024 promotes family, faith for African renaissance amid turmoil in Kenya
Hyun Jin Preston Moon, chairperson of the Global Peace Foundation, delivers a speech during the closing plenary of the Global Peace Leadership Conference Africa 2024 at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Nairobi, Kenya, Thursday. Yonhap
By Pyo Kyung-min
NAIROBI, Kenya — The Global Peace Leadership Conference Africa 2024 (GPLC), organized by the U.S.-based non-profit Global Peace Foundation (GPF), successfully concluded its Kenyan leg, Thursday, addressing the widespread public outcry against Kenya's proposed finance bill.
Held under the theme "One Family under God: Empowering African Renaissance as a Global Catalyst for Freedom, Peace, and Sustainable Development," the conference took place at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Nairobi’s Upper Hill, with Kenyan President William Ruto scheduled to attend alongside religious leaders and global dignitaries.
However, prior to its commencement, the conference was overshadowed by violent protests at the Kenyan Parliament, Tuesday, where citizens demonstrated against the proposed Finance Bill 2024. The bill, which aimed to generate an additional $2.7 billion in revenue through new levies on basic commodities such as bread, vegetable oil and sugar, along with a new motor vehicle circulation tax, led to the deaths of at least 23 civilians during the protests, as reported by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights.
Against this backdrop, the GPLC canceled at short notice its opening ceremony and the main plenary slated for Wednesday morning.
According to a GPF official, GPF Chairperson Hyun Jin Preston Moon, made a decision to cancel the opening ceremony that included President Ruto in order to "allow the Kenyan president time to tend to the domestic affairs of his nation and find a solution together with the people."
"GPF leaders, together with the Inter-Religious Council of Kenya representatives, worked late into the night to urgently communicate this important decision to the State House of Kenya," the official told The Korea Times.
Students of the Kenya Medical Training College participate in the Kenya National Tree Growing Campaign at the Konza Technopolis in Nairobi, Kenya, June 25, ahead of the main Global Peace Leadership Conference Africa 2024. Korea Times photo by Pyo Kyung-min
In the absence of Kenyan government representatives, the GPLC replaced its opening ceremony with a religious gathering to mourn the lives lost and acknowledge the urgency of Kenya's current crisis. The prayer session was attended by religious leaders from across Africa, representing diverse faiths including Catholicism, Islam and indigenous traditions.
After the prayers, afternoon sessions resumed with a focus on the event’s original purpose, exploring various themes related to the African renaissance. These included the "Family Track," "Community-Driven Peacebuilding Track," and the "Environmental Track."
The "Family Track" notably featured prominent figures — Frederic Ngoga, senior advisor for International Partnerships at the African Union; Alice Obasanjo, former first lady of Nigeria; and Nadine Maenza, president of the International Religious Freedom Secretariat — to emphasize the critical role of family values in African society.
Jun Sook Moon, chairperson of the Global Peace Women and wife of the GPF chairperson, also delivered a keynote address, highlighting the family as a fundamental bedrock of communities and nations.
“Faith and family are integral parts of the peacebuilding equation. Faith guides our quest to connect to God, the source of love, truth and life, and to understand the fundamental truths and principles governing how we should live,” Jun Sook Moon noted.
She extended her speech to address concerns about Korea’s declining birthrate and the broader, global implications of neglecting family values. She emphasized urging a renewed focus on strengthening family bonds for the community as a whole.
“When we place the family at the heart of our human experience, it transforms the way we live. Everything we do becomes a part of developing our capacity to contribute to humanity … Eventually, we marry to form strong, healthy families where we can raise children of goodness who, in their own turn, can continue a legacy of service to the world,” she added.
Thursday’s sessions featured talks under the themes of "Foundational Principles — Ubuntu Track," "Transforming Education Track" and "Youth Leadership Development Track," before the Concluding Plenary session drew curtains to the event.
Jun Sook Moon, fourth from left, chairperson of Global Peace Women, poses with the speakers of the “Family Track" session of the Global Peace Leadership Conference Africa 2024 at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Nairobi, Wednesday. Courtesy of Global Peace Foundation
At the concluding plenary were Hyun Jin Preston Moon; Manu Chandaria, chairperson of the Chandaria Foundation; Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former president of Liberia; Olusegen Obasanjo, former president of Nigeria; and Cardinal John Olorufemi Onaiyekan, Metropolitan Archboishop Emiritus of Abuja of Nigeria.
In a powerful closing speech, the GPF chairperson emphasized the importance of a spiritual awakening to achieve a renaissance on the African Continent.
“The vision of one family under God is why I came to Kenya, because before any African renaissance, there first has to be a spiritual great awakening,” the chairperson said in an unscripted speech.
“There has to be a vision that can spark our hearts, our spirits, our minds and our souls so that we can become the owner to be the change agents for our nations, for our region and for the continent of Africa.”
Addressing the recent protest in Kenya, the chairperson urged the youth of Africa to avoid using destructive measures for transformation, highlighting the critical role that nonviolence plays in sustainable change.
“Mark my words that anything that leads to violence and destruction only begets more violence and more destruction,” Moon said.
He further underscored a commitment to nonviolence and the necessity of government accountability, encapsulating the event's message of peace and development through unity and moral leadership.
“Remember that transformation happens based upon moral authority, based upon a peaceful movement rooted in reason,” Moon said. “And you have achieved that because with the collection of the religious leaders gathered here and the Global Peace Foundation and the decisions that we had made we had given this current regime an eye-opening reality that it is the government that serves the people and that the people's voices need to be heard.”