FFWPU Europe and Middle East: Example of 2 Unificationists in Public Service

Two South Koreans blessed in Family Federation marriage show outstanding historical example of serving one’s country and promoting peace

Segye Ilbo In order to understand modern South Korea, one must appreciate how deeply its national story has been shaped by war, division, ideological conflict, and rapid reconstruction. The Korean Peninsula was devastated by Japanese colonial rule (1910-1945), divided at the end of World War II, and then plunged into the Korean War (1950-1953), a brutal conflict that left millions dead and the country physically destroyed. What followed was not peace in a conventional sense, but a tense Cold War standoff between communist North Korea and capitalist South Korea. South Korea’s survival depended heavily on its alliance with the United States, while its internal politics were marked by instability, military intervention, and the urgent task of economic development.

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Against this dramatic backdrop, a Korean opinion piece by religious reporter Jeong Seong-su published in the daily newspaper Segye Ilbo on 20th February reflects on the lives of two men - Han Sang-guk (한상국) and Bo Hi Pak (박보희 - 1930-2019) - who, in the author’s view, represent a particular model of cooperation between religious conviction and public service.

Both men were members of the Unification Church - now called the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification - a new religious movement founded in South Korea in the 1950s. At the same time, both served as military officers and later became involved in diplomacy and international cultural outreach. The article presents their lives as examples of what it calls “church- state cooperation” (정교협력 - 政敎協力): not the fusion of Religious affairs reporter Jeong religious institutions with government power, but the idea that Seong-su individuals motivated by faith can serve the nation in critical moments of history.

For readers unfamiliar with Korean politics of the 1960s, one key episode is especially important. In May 1961, Major General Park Chung-hee (박정희) led a military coup that overthrew South Korea’s fragile civilian government. At that time, the United States - South Korea’s principal ally - officially opposed military takeovers, creating uncertainty about whether Washington would support the new regime. South Korea was economically weak and militarily dependent on American assistance. If the United States refused to recognize Park’s government, the consequences could have been severe.

In November 1961, Park traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet U.S. President John F. Kennedy in the Oval Office. The future of the U.S.-South Korea alliance was effectively at stake. In high-level diplomacy, especially under tense conditions, language matters enormously. Subtle shifts in tone, nuance, and emphasis can influence political outcomes. Serving as interpreter between the two leaders was Lieutenant Colonel Han Sang-kuk (한상국). [See On 14th November 1961, Chairman of the Supreme Council for editor’s note below] National Reconstruction of Korea, Park Chung-hee (left), holds talks with U.S. President John F. Kennedy (right) at the White Although formally listed as a House. Lieutenant Colonel Han Sang-guk (center left) and Dr. Paul military interpreter, the Segye Crane (center right) are serving as interpreters. Seated behind them Ilbo article argues that Han’s are Korean cabinet members who accompanied Chairman Park role went far beyond technical translation. He was positioned between two heads of state at a delicate historical moment. According to the author, every word choice carried strategic weight. In such circumstances, the interpreter is not merely relaying language; he is mediating political meaning. The article portrays Han as someone who combined professional military discipline with personal religious conscience, suggesting that his faith strengthened his sense of responsibility.

Following this meeting, the United States effectively accepted Park’s government, and American military and economic assistance continued - support that proved crucial to South Korea’s later development.

The opinion piece traces Han’s later career to reinforce this theme. After his military service, according to official Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs records, he became South Korea’s ambassador to Norway from June 1976 to November 1980. Later, he held leadership positions in major media organizations, including The Washington Times and Segye Ilbo. While his titles changed - from soldier to diplomat to media executive - the author argues that his Ambassador Han Sang-guk at his ambassadorial residence in Oslo, fundamental mission remained Norway in the Summer of 1978: Back from left: Viggo Jörgensen, the same: to safeguard national Takeru Kamiyama, Neil Salonen, Doris Orme, Han Sang-guk, his interests and promote the U.S.- wife Lim Byeong-sook, Ingrid Schneider Jörgensen, Ken Sudo. Korea alliance during the Cold Front from left: Moon Ye-jin, Moon Heung-jin, Moon Un-jin War.

The second figure highlighted in the column, Bo Hi Pak, is presented as a complementary example. Like Han, he had a military background and was affiliated with the what is now called the Family Federation. Han Sang-kuk was with his wife Lim Byeong-sook one of the 33 couples who had their marriage blessed by Father Moon and Mother Han in 1961. So were Bo Hi Pak and his wife Yoon Gi-sook.

Pak’s story intersects with another pivotal moment in Korean and American history: the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower.

During the 1952 U.S. presidential campaign, Eisenhower famously declared, “I shall go to Korea,” signaling his determination to resolve the ongoing Korean War. After winning the election, he visited the Korean front lines before even taking office. In 1953, his administration helped bring about the Korean Armistice Agreement, which halted active fighting. Later that year, the United States and South Korea signed a mutual defense treaty that formalized their long-term security alliance - an agreement that remains the cornerstone of South Korea’s national defense today.

More than a decade later, in 1965, Bo Hi Pak organized a performance in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by the “Little Angels,” a Korean children’s dance troupe associated with the Family Federation. The performance took place at Eisenhower’s home. The symbolism was powerful: children from a country once devastated by war were performing traditional Korean dance before the American leader who had helped secure the armistice and formalize the alliance. The article interprets this as a moment of “civilian diplomacy”, in which cultural expression reinforced political friendship.

Bo Hi Pak continued this approach in subsequent years. He helped arrange performances by the Little Angels at the White House during Richard Nixon’s presidency and before Queen Elizabeth II in the United Kingdom. Through music and dance rather than military agreements, he sought to deepen international goodwill toward South Korea. The Dr. Bo Hi Pak with former U.S. President Dwight author describes this as building a bridge of Eisenhower at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, during “soft power” on top of the “hard power” the Little Angels children’s ballet company’s first foundation created by military alliances and overseas tour in September 1965 treaties.

For a non-Korean reader, the broader argument of the opinion piece centers on the relationship between religion and public life. Modern democratic systems, including South Korea’s, are built on the principle of separation of church and state. Governments are not supposed to favor a particular religion, and religious institutions do not formally control political authority. The author acknowledges this principle clearly.

However, the column distinguishes institutional separation from personal conviction. While the state must remain neutral, the individuals who operate within it inevitably bring their beliefs and moral frameworks to their work. The author argues that faith, in the cases of Han Sang- kuk (한상국) and Bo Hi Pak (박보희), did not undermine democracy but rather fortified Dr. Bo Hi Pak with Queen Elizabeth II after a special performance their sense of duty. In this for her at the Royal Court in London in November 1971. interpretation, religious belief served as an inner source of integrity, courage, and commitment during moments of national crisis.

The article does not call for theocratic governance or the merging of religious institutions with political authority. Instead, it highlights historical episodes in which individuals shaped by religious faith played influential roles in diplomacy and cultural outreach. By revisiting these examples, the author suggests that religious values can coexist with democratic governance, provided that formal institutional boundaries are respected.

In essence, the column presents Han Sang-kuk as the “voice” of diplomacy during a decisive Cold War meeting and Bo Hi Pak as a pioneer of cultural diplomacy who expanded South Korea’s international

presence through the arts. Together, they are portrayed as figures who navigated war, ideological conflict, and global politics with both military professionalism and religious conviction.

For readers outside Korea, the piece offers insight into how some Koreans interpret their nation’s rise from wartime devastation to global prominence. It frames that transformation not only in terms of economic policy and military alliances, but also in terms of personal belief, moral commitment, and what the author sees as constructive cooperation between faith and public service.

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Text: Knut Holdhus, editor

[Editor’s note: There was a U.S. press photograph from 14th November 1961 showing “Lt. Col. Sanguk Han, Korean interpreter” seated between President John F. Kennedy and General / Chairman Park Chung- Hee during Park’s visit to the White House following the May 1961 military coup. This caption appears in the archival photo record (AP / Alamy), confirming the existence of a Korean military officer by that name serving as an interpreter at that summit.]

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HAK JA HAN … I JAPAN … I MEDIA … I RELIGIOUS FREEDOM … I COMMEMORATING … I VARIOUS …

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Reflections by Ph Dr. Ju raj Lajda (Doctor of Philosophy), lecturer and publisher, former political prisoner under the communist regime in Czech oslovakia.

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Prague, 21st Feb ruary 2026 - A few hours ago, we Categories learned that Dr. Hak Ja Han, the 83- yea r-old leader of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, has Send us a message been returned to her detention cell First Name * Last Name

after a brief ten- day release for urgent medical t reatment in Email *

hospita l. She Email Address remains detained on what, in m y view, appears to be Your Message •

fabricat ed and circumst antial evidence. A rt ist ic impression of Mother Han in /,

Dr. Han suffers d eten t ion cell. Illustrat ion: Grok xAI. from multiple Submit serious health conditions: deteriorating eyesight, mobility limitat ions following knee surgery, an d a severe cardiac condition - arrhythm ia - for w hich she und erwent surgery only five mont hs ago. Given these circumstances, I am deeply disturbed by her return to det ent ion. It is d ifficult t o believe t hat her medica l condition could have improved so d ramatica lly in ten days t hat her life is no longer at risk.

I am profou ndly shocked by t he treatment of this e lde rly re ligious leader under t he current South Korean admin istratio n. From my pe rspective - and I believe many share this concern - t he decision to return her to d et e ntion raises urgent huma nita ria n and ethical questions.

My reaction is sh ap ed in pa rt by personal experience. I was myself detained long-term unde r a Communist regime in Eastern Europe. Even in that pol itica l system, I was treated more humanely than what now appears to be a life-threatening detention imposed on Dr. Han in a count ry that has been considered democratic since 1987.

The p lace where Dr. Laj da was imprisoned from 7973 to 7976 - the Palace of Justice in Bratisl ava, Slovakia. Photo: Laurene Klas

situation b rings back m emories of my imprisonment in Czechoslova kia in t he early 1970s. Ironically, I was arrested for following the teachings of the South Korean re ligious leader Sun My ung Moon . A long with 17 other yo ung people - mostly students - I was sentenced to three years and two months for “subve rsion of the republic” after nea rly ten m o nths of investigation before t rial.

During the investig ation p hase, I was held in remand p rison in Bratislava, w here I was interrog at ed daily unt il t he case fi le was c losed and the ind ictment prepared. About six months into m y detention, after pro longed confine m e nt in a 2-by-3-meter cell - ofte n shared with two o r three other in mates - m y longstanding atopic eczem a worsened d ra m atica lly. The p rison environment ca u sed my condition to d et eriorate severe ly.

Mug shot o f Juraj Laj da from 7973. Photo: Archive of the Prison a n d Judicia l Guard Corps of t h e Slo vak Republic.

When I reported th is to t he p rison doct or, he acknowledged that he cou ld not properly treat m e under the limited condit ions available. He therefore requested t h at I be transferred to another p rison faci lity in Brno, where better medical care was available.

I was transported t here and rema ined for forty days until my condit ion stabilized and the acute ph ase of t he ill ness was brought under cont rol.

Alt h ough I was still deprived of liberty in Brno, t he cond it ions were adapted to medica l necessity. The ce ll was larger, I had a bed, and my daily routine was adj usted to facil it ate treatment . Each day I was ta ken t o the infirmary, where doct ors worked d iligent ly to restore my h ealt h.

The decision regard ing my hospitalizat ion and its du ration was made by a p hysician. W hether forma l authorization from an investigator or judge was req ui red, I do not know ; if it was, it was g ra nted. The purpose of detent ion was not suspended - but it was carried out with recogn it ion t hat I was first and foremost a pat ient in need of medica l ca re.

The doctor treat ed me as a h uman being , not as a political offender. His duty was to p reserve hea lt h and life. He acted according to the ethical obligations em bodied in the Hippocratic Oath - t hat is, he wou ld strive to p reserve human life at all costs. Polit ical considerat ions did not override medica l judgment. Even in a Com m u n ist p rison, the principle p revailed t hat an accused person remains a human bei ng deserving of care.

I come f rom a fam ily of p hysic ians; m y father was a well-known surgeon. I t herefore understand the professional and ethica l responsibilities t h at accompany Papy rus t ext: med ica l p ractice. In my case, medical fragment of j udgment determined t he course of Hippocratic oath. t reatment - not prosecutorial or j ud icial Photo: Wei/come d iscretion. Collection. License: CC Attr 4 .0 Int This occurred in 1974, under the Com m unist regime of former Czechoslova kia.

Today, I m ust ask: w ho determines Dr. Hak Ja Han’s medical fate7 Is it t he attending p hysician - o r the prosecutor, invest igator, or j udge7 If a doct or recommends cont inued hosp ita lization, what p revents the authorit ies from grant ing it? Legal procedure should not sup ersed e the p reservation of h u man life.

Are medical professionals in th is case able to act independent ly according to their ethical obl igations? The Hippocratic Oath is not conditional upon polit ica l context. Physicians are entrusted wit h safe guarding life, irrespect ive of t he legal status of their pat ients.

If m ed ical necessity is su bordinat ed to political considerations, t he situat ion ceases to be lawful d et ention and beg ins to resem ble deliberate endangerment. The quest ion is not m erely lega l - it is moral.

My conclusion is soberi ng . In my own experience as a pol itical p risoner under Commu nism, m edical ca re was ultimately respected. If an eld erly d et ainee in contem porary Sout h Korea is denied necessary hospitalization d espite g rave hea lt h risks, it compels serious reflection about the d irection in wh ich t hat system is moving.

I am d eeply shocked and profoundly concerned .

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Featured image above: Ph D r. Jura) Laj d a, here in Prague, Czechia

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