□ On January 17, 2018, the Institute for Unification Education hosted
an event for the reopening of Busan Unification Hall, with the
following officials in attendance: Acting Director Lee Mu-il of the
institute, Lee Man-soo (special advisor to the Mayor of Busan), Vice
Chairman Kim Yeong-wook of the Busan Metropolitan Council, and
Superintendent Kim Seok-joon of the Busan Metropolitan City Office of Education.
o As a part of the event, Busan Unification Hall was reborn with the
theme Awakened to unification, as the center for unification-related
education in Busan. The first floor will be an area centered around
hands-on experience for children, while the second floor will house
exhibition spaces for unification-related stories. The hall is
expected to attract over 200,000 people a year, serving as an arena
for unification-related education through on hands-on experience.
o Since its original opening in Busan Liberation Hall in 1989, Busan
Unification Hall has been providing unification-related education,
information, and materials to its visitors, but due to the length of
time since opening, the center was in need of some improvements.
*Since 2011, the Institute of Unification Education has been
promoting the improvement of 8 of the 12 total unification halls
located around the country, one of which is the newly reopened hall in
Busan.
□ The Ministry of Unification plans to encourage
young people to use the hall as much as possible in cooperation with
local schools, and will continue to make efforts to further develop
the space into an experience-based education center illustrating the
future of unification.
