2011 Winner of 14th Award : Dr. Arjun Karki, Nepal

Rules & RegulationsThe 15th Tji Haksoon Justice & Peace Award

I made my declaration of conscience for the sake of the dignity of the person, the restoration of the person, the recovery of democracy. As a person, a christian, a man of faith, as a bishop of the Church I am but a faithful servant of God who loves God, his Church and his country. Rather that follow the will of man I choose to follow the will of God

- Extract from the letter of Bishop Tji Haksoon from jail to Pope Paul VI in 1974

TitleThe 15th Tji Haksoon Justice & Peace Award

The PrizeAn Award and prize of $10,000(US)

Time & Place of Award CeremonyMarch 2012 Seoul Korea

OrganizationIt is sponsored by the Tji Haksoon Justice & Peace Foundation.It is administered by the Tji Haksoon Justice & Peace Award Adjudicating Committee.It is supported by : MBC (Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation) PBC (Pyonghwa Broadcasting Corporation) YTN News Hankyore Newspaper Catholic Times Pyonghwa Newspaper

The Meaning and the Purpose of the Award• It seeks to support individuals or organizations who have contributed to the Justice and Peace of Humanity.

People or organizations who have generously given of themselves to the cause of freedom and equality of people while not bowing in the face of oppressive society structures.

• It is a memorial to the life work and the will of the late Bishop Tji HakSoon who contributed to social justice and democracy by seeking to humanize the oppressors and free the oppressed.

• It seeks to incarnate a Gospel over-flowing with Peace and Love; to make justice flow like a river through the promotion of genuine reconciliation of the tensions and divisions arising from poverty and racism, religion and ideology, nationalism and gender.

• It is the only International Human Rights Award in Korea funded entirely by the Public.

Qualifications of the Nominee • An organization or person who has worked for democracy or reform in any country

• An organization or person who has denounced and sought to resolve torture, kidnapping, murder etc. all of which destroy the basic rights of people in oppressive social structures.

• An organization or person who has contributed to peace and reconciliation of humanity by fighting or struggling against the invasion, occupation or the usurption of the right to self determination of a country or people.

• An organization or person who has sacrificed themselves for genuine reconciliation. People who have publicized issues, researched or engaged in national or international solidarity in the face of the tensions and divisions arising from poverty and racism, religion and ideology, nationalism and gender.

• Apart from the above any person or organization who has contributed to social justice or international peace.

The 15th Tji Haksoon Justice & Peace Award

Basic Regulations• Candidates for the Award must receive a nomination (in accordance with the official form) from a person

designated by the adjudicating committee or some other individual or group.

• Candidates for the Award must respond conscientiously to scrutiny by the adjudication committee in terms of interview, request of additional documentation, questions etc. If any falsehood or distortion of the truth is discovered in the submissions then the prize can be cancelled or withdrawn with no prior notice.

• In the final decision the prize can be divided between different candidates. The winer is expected to attend the award ceremony and the accompanying events unless there are extenuating circumstances.

The Award adjudicating CommitteeThe committee consists of Korean scholars, church persons, lawyers, NGO representatives under the chairmanship of the Catholic Msgr. Byungsang Kim

Time table for the Award• Final Date for Submissions: August 31. 2011• First Adjudication(Examination of materials submitted): September 20. 2011• Second Adjudication(Interview, questions and additional inquiries): October 15. 2011• Decision and Informing the Winner: December 1. 2011

History of the Event1997 Winner of 1st Award: The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions.

1998 Winner of 2nd Award: Raphael Clinic (A medical outreach project for migrant workers in Korea)

1999 Winner of 3th Award: Ms. Rosaline Costa (Bangladesh Human Rigths Worker)

2000 Winner of 4th Award: Ms. Ibu Sulami (Indonesia H. R. Worker)

2001 Winner of 5th Award: NCJP (National Commission for Justice & peace of Pakistan)

2002 Winner of 6th Award: people's Action of Revise Unjust SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement between South Korea and USA)

2003 Winner of 7th Award: Asian Center for Peoples Progress (ACPP) - Hot Line (Hong Kong)

2004 Winner of 8th Award: Yaung Chi Oo Workers Association (YCOWA) - Burma

2005 Winner of 9th Award: Kathi Zellweger (Karitas-Hong Kong)

2007 Winner of 10th Award: Dr. Salai Tun Than (Burma Democratization motion)

2008 Winner of 11th Award: Workers Assistance Center (Philippines)

2009 Winner of 12th Award : Rukshan Fernando (Sri Lanka)

2010 Winner of 13th Award : JANODAYAM (India)

2011 Winner of 14th Award : Dr. Arjun Karki (Nepal)

The 15th Tji Haksoon Justice & Peace Award

Tji Haksoon was born on Sept 9th 1921 in Junghwa,

Pyongan Namdo, North Korea and was baptized Daniel in

1934. In March 1948 he entered the Dokwon seminary but he

fled to South Korea in January, 1950 with his friend Youn

Konghi(former Archbishop of Kwangju) to escape religious

persecution of the North Korean regime.

On arrival in Seoul he immediately transferred to the

Seoul Seminary. He took part in the Korean War as a soldier

and experienced the tragedy of civil war. Upon discharge

from the army he returned to the seminary and was ordained

priest by Archbishop Noh Kinam on December 15th 1952. In

1965 when Wonju Diocese was erected in Gangwondo in

South Korea he was appointed the first bishop of the new

diocese.

He established the Catholic Centre in Wonju which

grew to become the centre of cultural activities in the Wonju

area. In September 1970 he was a founding member of the

Wonju Munwha Broadcasting Company holding some 40% of

the shares. He devoted himself to the development of local

media and the spread of the Gospel through broadcasting. In

this endeavour he was infuriated by the corruption in the

world of broadcasting. Thus in order to protect the

broadcasting company he sponsored a rally in October 1971

to call for justice and to denounce injustice.

For 3 days priests, religious and believers protested at

Wondong Cathedral. This was a significant event for the first

time the Catholic Church in Korea together with the public

had set out to fight against social injustice and corruption

under the leadership of a bishop.

Due to his concern for human rights he was appointed

president of the Korean branch of Amnesty International in

September 1972. In October that same year he was elected

chaplain bishop for the Young Catholic Workers, the Catholic

Justice & Peace Commission and the Lay Apostolate Council

of Korea. Together with these groups he strove to protect the

rights of the powerless and the oppressed both inside and

outside the Church.

Because of his severe criticism of the 'Yushin',

Constitution (a new constitution arbitrarily proclaimed by the

then President Park Chunghee in 1972) he was arrested by

the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) in July 6 1974

upon arrival in Gimpo Airport, Seoul after an overseas trip. In

response to his arrest on July 10th the Korean Bishop's

Conference declared their support for his position by issuing

a statement entitled "Fighting for Justice is the Duty of

Bishops". Bishop Tji was released the following day and was

placed under house arrest in a convent.

However on July 23rd he was arrested again after

making a declaration of conscience to the foreign press in

which he stated that the 'Yushin' Constitution was invalid. He

was immediately arrested and sentenced to 15 years

imprisonment on August 9 1974.

The arrest and imprisonment of Bishop Tji led to the

collective struggle of the Catholic Church for social justice.

The opening of prayer meetings for his release led to the

establishment of the 'Catholic Priests Association for

Justice'. On release from jail in February 1975 he continued

to work for human rights as president of the 'Social Mission

Federation of the Korean Church', an ecumenical

organization.

In 1985 under a special agreement by both

governments Bishop Tji was a member of the delegation

which visited North Korea to establish contact between

separated family members. He met his sister after 35 years

separation but the meeting was very short and they were

never to see each other again. To the end, Bishop Tji had a

positive concern for social welfare issues. In 1988 he

founded the Wonju Catholic Social Welfare Association and

in 1991 he became the president of the South North Disabled

Persons Walking Campaign.

Tji Haksoon (Daniel) was a forerunner of the human

rights movement in Korean Catholic Church he was a symbol

of the suffering people. He died in March 12 1993 at the age

of 72.

A Short Account of the Life of Bishop Daniel Tji Haksoon

Nominee :(Individual or Organization)

Date of Birth :(Establishment)

Address :

Telephone Number :

E-Mail :

Occupation / Position :

Reason for Nomination : (Accomplishments) Please write down the nominee's career and achievements in details.

Nominator : (Position / organization)

Address :

E-mail : Please e-mail(peacejt@chol.com) inquires about the nominee. We don't take phone inquires.

Thank you for your time.

Remarks : 1) The nomination should be based on the truth. 2) Belonging to the Catholic Church is not a condition. 3) It would be appreciated if you could furnish us with the data or materials, such as

audio/video, photographs and literatures, helpful for us to have access to the nominee in a short length of time.

4) You can download the nomination form from our official web site http://www.justice.or.kr

Send to : The Tji Haksoon Justice & Peace Foundation #313, 10 Pil-dong 2-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, Korea 100-272Telephone: 82-2-2266-7001 Fax : 82-2-2269-2932 e-mail : peacejt@chol.com

Nomination Form

THE TJI HAKSOON JUSTICE & PEACE FOUNDATION

Address : #313, Chungmu Building 10, Pil-dong 2-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul, Korea 100-272Tel : 82-2-2266-7001 Fax : 82-2-2269-2932 E-mail : peacejt@chol.com http://www.justice.or.kr

Dr. Arjun Karki was born in Khandbari, a remote village located in Sankhuwasabha district of north-eastern Nepal on 22nd July 1963. Having been born and raised in a remote and backward village, Dr. Karki was acutely aware of the existing problems of exploitation, exclusion and discrimination due to the dominant casteand class systems prevalent in Nepal. These inhumane socio-cultural norms and the political economy of his formative years primarily motivated him to fight for poverty eradication, democracy, human rights and human dignity causeswhich he is passionately defending to this day.

Dr. Karki completed his primary and secondary education in 1980 from his hometown and next pursued his higher secondary and college education in the field of Agricultural Science and Agricultural Economics from the prestigious Institute of Agriculture and Animal Sciences (IAAS) located in Rampur in Chitwan district of Nepal which he completed in 1989. He received a Masters in Management and Implementation of Development Projects from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UNMIST), UK in 1995. In 2001, he received his PhD in Development Studies from the University of East Anglia, School of Development Studies, UK.

Dr. Karki has been engaged in development politics as a student and youth activist, academician, social activist and development practitioner. He entered the world of social activism during his school years as a community worker, eventually making headway into the national, regional and international realms of pro poor development advocacy. A motivated human rights defender involved in empowering grassroots people against caste-, ethnic-, gender- and class-based discrimination in Nepal and beyond; he championed a campaign against the inhuman bonded labour system in Nepal thus contributing towards its abolition in 2000. The extensive nature of his activism and professional work rightly embodies policy advocacy that is key in producing the necessary paradigm shifts in the entire development process and in particular, the process of development ‘from below’. His PhD thesis "The Politics of Poverty and Movements from Below in Nepal" is founded on original case studies of three sets of social movements ‘from below’ in Nepal – the bonded labour or Kamaiya movement, the land rights movement and the Maoist movement.

Dr. Karki was actively engaged in Nepal’s democracy movement in 1980 and 1990 having been rooted in student activism during the preceding Panchayat era marked by an anti-people polity led by the king after the abolition of the existent

political parties. He was arrested and tortured by the police and security forces more than 32 times during the last 30 years of his struggle for democracy, human rights and peace. Throughout the Maoist conflict (1996-2006), he was intensively involved in conflict mediation, conflict transformation and in defending the development space as the President of NGO Federation of Nepal, the Regional Co-ordinator of the South Asia Alliance for Poverty Eradication (SAAPE) while also heading Rural Reconstruction Nepal (RRN) which he founded in 1989. He played a noted role as a human rights defender at the national and international levels – especially at the United Nations (UN) and European Union (EU) levels - during the ‘direct royal regime’ in 2005 and the subsequent second democracy movement or Jana AndolanII in April 2006. He spent almost a year in exile during these trying times of political repression and witch hunt in the country.

Dr. Karki is currently working in twin capacity as the President of RRN and the International Co-ordinator of LDC Watch that is legally based in Brussels, Belgium with the international headquarters in Kathmandu, Nepal. He co-ordinates the LDC Watch civil society campaign in 48UN defined Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Caribbean. His present profile engages him both at the grassroots and national as well as at the regional and international arena of development politics, articulating his role as an international lobbyist and campaigner in and around the issues related to the internationally agreed development goals (IADGs) including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Brussels Programme of Action (BPoA) for the LDCs. In light of the upcoming Fourth United Nations Conference on theLeast Developed Countries (LDC-IV) scheduled on 9-13 May 2011 in Istanbul, Turkey which will review the Brussels Programme as well as adopt the next LDC Programme of Action for the Decade 2011-2020; Dr Karki has assumed the role of Chair and Spokesperson of the UN LDC IV Civil Society Forum that will be organised in parallel to the UN LDC-IV.

Dr. Karki has undertaken extensive research and published books, contributing to various international journals on the issues of politics of poverty and rural social movements underscoring the significance of both, the economic, social and cultural rights (ESCR) as well as civil and political rights (CPR). He has co-edited the much acclaimed, first comprehensive account of the Maoist insurgency in the English language, "The People’s War in Nepal: Left Perspectives".

Dr. Karki is married to Gauree Thakuri and is blessed with two children, daughter Ruby and son Roman who all live in Kathmandu, Nepal.

2011 Winner of 14th AwardDr. Arjun Karki | LDC Watch, RRN | Chairman | Nepal