[HWPL]

[HWPL] Main Initiatives of HWPL Peace Projects in Mindanao, Philippines 1

Chairman ManHee Lee is the head representative of the global peace organization HWPL (Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light), which is striving for the enactment and implementation of the international peace law 'Declaration of Peace and Cessation of War (DPCW)'. The  DPCW is a legal instrument comprised of 10 articles and 38 clauses that can end wars and hostilities throughout the world. HWPL is also spreading a culture of peace and implementing peace education.

Chairman ManHee Lee experienced the cruelty and tragedy of war as a veteran of the Korean War. This is one of the reasons why he founded a global peace campaign as the head of HWPL. He has traveled the globe more than 35 times to meet and persuade politicians, legal experts, journalists, professors, peace activists, civil organization leaders, heads of tribes and others to unite them for the work of peace. The significant fruits borne out of his hard work are the World Alliance of Religions' Peace (WARP) Summit and HWPL Peace Committee. The DPCW was drafted and finalised by the HWPL Peace Committee.

How, you may wonder, do I know this? About 10 years ago, when I had just been discharged from military service, I came to know HWPL and Chairman ManHee Lee while researching the topic of civil conflicts to satisfy my curiosity in ongoing global issues. At that time, the island of Mindanao in the Philippines was suffering from a major civil conflict that lasted more than 40 years, and Chairman ManHee Lee and HWPL resolved this conflict through non-violent means.

Chairman Lee brought an end to the conflict in Mindanao by holding a peace talk between the warring Catholic and Islamic groups. Before the talk, HWPL and Chairman ManHee Lee held a Peace Walk to spread the culture of peace in Mindanao with the many locals who had gathered out of a desire for peace.

Chairman ManHee Lee's pressing appeal today is that humanity unites for sustainable peace in order to pass on the legacy of peace to future generations worldwide. He doesn't just talk peace, but has worked tirelessly for it through practical peace campaigns for over a decade.

I decided to become a supporter of HWPL and Chairman ManHee Lee's peace initiatives because I also desire a world of peace for all posterity.

Today I'd like to introduce an article from HWPL official homepage regarding Main Initiatives of HWPL's Peace Projects in Mindanao, Philippines.

Civil Society-led Peace Agreement and HWPL Peace Day

On 24 January 2014, a ceremony was held to celebrate signing an agreement reached through the effort of the civil society for Mindanao’s peace in General Santos City of the Philippines. The function hosted and organized by HWPL, the IWPG, and the IPYG invited the region’s politicians, university professors, religious leaders, students, and around 300 civilians to witness two representatives, Fernando R. Capella, an Archbishop Emeritus of Archdiocese of Davao, and Esmael Mangudadatu, the governor of Maguindanao, sign the peace agreement, promising to cooperate for the cessation of conflicts and establishment of peace.

The Mindanao Peace Agreement mediated by HWPL proposes an approach that adopts a civil society-centered stance to improve awareness and take action for peace. Hence, HWPL is currently focusing on carrying out civilian-led peace activities to reaffirm the shared commitment to peace that the people of Mindanao have as they dwell in the very sites of disputes, and to lay the foundation for sustainable peace to naturally grow and take root together with the international community.

The Provincial Government of Maguindanao and the leadership of the MILF declared 24 January 2014, when the Mindanao Peace Agreement was signed, as HWPL Peace Day. HWPL Peace Day is observed on 24 January every year in Mindanao.

“In 2021, I convinced CHED to call on President Rodrigo Duterte, to declare 24 January a regular holiday, being National Peace Day. The CHED Commission En Banc issued an endorsement to President Duterte, urging him to declare 24 January as National Peace Day that will provide for simultaneous celebration and observance of peace through peace activities, events, and ceremonies by all instrumentalities and in agencies of government, including the private sector.”

– Dr. Ronald Adamat, Commissioner of Commission on Higher Education (CHED)

Interested in HWPL's peace work for the world? Please visit following link :)

HWPL Official Homepage

https://www.hwpl.kr/language/en/home-hwpl-_en/