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North Korea Meets South Korea

Ambassadors of Both Countries to Attend Meeting at Freie Universität on October 2

№ 254/2018 from Oct 01, 2018

The Ambassadors of North and South Korea in Germany will meet on Tuesday, October 2, during the official opening ceremony of a new building for Korea Studies at Freie Universität Berlin. The inauguration ceremony will be preceded by the Korea Global Forum to be held in the Continuing Education Center of Freie Universität Berlin, Otto-von-Simson-Str. 12, in Berlin-Dahlem. The Korea Global Forum will address “Peacekeeping and Reunification on the Korean Peninsula.” It is being held in cooperation with the Reunification Ministry of South Korea. There will be simultaneous translation between German and Korean. The Forum is public, admission is free, and registration is not required.

As part of the Korea Global Forum, the Institute of Korean Studies will celebrate its move from the previous location on Fabeckstraße 7 to the nearby Otto-von-Simson-Str. 11. A traditional pavilion in the front garden of the building will be inaugurated under the leadership of a South Korean Buddhist monk based in Berlin. During the “topping out” ceremony, the monk will dedicate the pavilion following Korean traditions. He will appease the spirits of the house in order to ask for permission to use the building. The South Korean architect who designed the pavilion based his plans on the pavilion in the Bongeensa Temple in Seoul, which was built during the 12th and 13th centuries (late Koryo period). In Seoul the temple pavilion serves as a roof for a natural spring fountain. Though the pavilion in Berlin does not have a natural spring, it will be symbolically baptized as the “Fountain of Wisdom.” The property will also be “guarded” by four traditional Korean “spirit poles” (roughly comparable to the function of totem poles).

Times and Locations

Forum

  • Tuesday, October 2, 2018, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • Continuing Education Center, Freie Universität Berlin, Otto-von-Simson-Str. 12 in Berlin-Dahlem, 14195 Berlin; subway stations: Dahlem-Dorf or Freie Universität/Thielplatz (U3)

Inauguration

  • Tuesday, October 2, 2018, 5:30 p.m.
  • Otto-von-Simson-Straße 11, 14195 Berlin; subway stations: Dahlem-Dorf or Freie Universität/Thielplatz (U3)

More Information and Interview Request

Eunjeung Felsner, Institute of Korea Studies, Tel.: +49 30 838- 56894, Email: koreastudien@geschkult.fu-berlin.de

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