Peace documentary
on Mindanao premieres in Davao City
Press Release
September 7, 2022
MANILA – In
celebration of the National Peace Consciousness Month, a peace
documentary titled “Great Legacy” premiered in a cinema in Davao
City on the evening of September 6, 2022. Around 500 distinguished
guests from the government, education sector, media, as well as
civic society leaders, religious leaders and peace advocates from
Mindanao have attended.
The documentary was
produced by SMV Media Group, a broadcast company based in Seoul,
South Korea, in collaboration with Heavenly Culture, World Peace,
Restoration of Light (HWPL), an international non-profit
organization advocating for global peace and cessation of war. The
film showcased the groups’ successful peace movement in Mindanao
which contributed to the peace process in the region.
Davao City Mayor Baste
Duterte congratulated and commended HWPL and SMV on the screening
saying, "By showing people documentaries and films on peace, we may
encourage more to be one with us in our peacekeeping and
peacebuilding efforts for our communities."
HWPL’s peace movement in
the Philippines started when HWPL Chairman Lee Man-hee, a Korean war
veteran, visited Mindanao. He mediated a civilian peace agreement
signed by Archbishop Emeritus Fernando Capalla and then Maguindanao
Governor Esmael “Toto” G. Mangudadatu on January 14, 2014 in General
Santos City. Before the audience of 300 people including
politicians, university professors, religious leaders, and students,
the representatives promised to cooperate in ceasing the conflict
and building peace especially in the Mindanao region which has long
suffered the aftereffects of war.
This agreement became the
starting point of HWPL in raising public awareness about peace not
only in Mindanao but throughout the Philippines, based on the
universal principles of mutual understanding, respect, and harmony.
HWPL’s peace initiatives include law enactment for peace, interfaith
dialogues, peace education, and youth and women empowerment.
In the film, Martin Lee
Hojian, former chairperson of the UN Human Rights Commission of the
United Nations, Homoibi, highly praised HWPL Chairman Lee, who
intervened in the realization of peace in Mindanao as a third
person, and the Filipino people who had a keen passion for peace.
Also, Nabil Tirmage, Asia Pacific Broadcasting Development
Organization program manager, said that the civil peace agreement in
2014 is an ‘amazing case of realization of peace that the world
should study’.
Before the screening, a
press conference was held for Mr. John Rommel Garces, Chief Branch
Manager of HWPL Philippines, Ms. Hyun Sook Yoon, Chairwoman of the
International Women’s Peace Group (IWPG), and Ms. Sholai Lim, Vice
President for Mindanao of the Philippine Federation of Local
Councils of Women and Publicity Ambassador of IWPG.
IWPG, a partner
organization of HWPL, unveiled the first IWPG Peace Monument on the
grounds of Maragusan, Davao de Oro overlooking the sea of clouds on
September 6 morning. Their delegates from South Korea traveled to
the Philippines for the first IWPG Peace Tour from September 5-7.