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| Jeong Un-chan, chairman of the 2025 Korean Dream Hangang Festival Organizing Committee, explains the purpose of the event on the 13th. Chung said the event will be a venue for hope and harmony that brings together the aspirations of the times. Photo courtesy = Korean Dream Hangang Festival Organizing Committee |
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| Photo provided = Korean Dream Hangang Festival Organizing Committee |
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| "2025 Korea Dream Hangang Festival' at the press conference held on the 19th floor of the Korea Press Center!> Hong Dae-sung, the music director who composed the song, is giving his feelings Photo courtesy = Korean Dream Hangang Festival Organizing Committee |
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On August 15, the 80th anniversary of Korea's liberation, the "2025 Korean Dream Hangang Festival" will be held around the Hangang Park in Ttukseom, Seoul. The organizing committee of the Korean Dream Hangang Festival (Chairman Jung Un-chan, co-organizing committee Chairman Jung Woo-taek and Lee Jong-gul) held a press conference at the Korea Press Center on the 13th and announced that it will hold a large-scale civic participation festival under the theme of 'Unification of the People, Unification of the Korean Peninsula, Beyond the Miracle of the Hangang River'".
The 2025 Korean Dream Hangang Festival was designed as a citizen-led unification movement to realize a 'unified Korea that contributes to world peace through culture and participation, not politics or ideology'. In particular, the festival, which will be held in a historical year when 80 years of division and 80 years of liberation overlap, will be promoted as a symbolic event that sheds light on the meaning of true liberation completed by unification and presents the vision of national reconciliation and a sustainable future unified state.
The organizing committee appointed former Prime Minister Chung Un-chan as the venue, former Vice National Assembly Speaker Jung Woo-taek and former Democratic Party floor leader Lee Jong-gul as co-organizing committee chairmen. North Korean defectors, young people, civil society activists, etc
It is operated as a platform for participating non-political pan-citizens' unification movement.
The entire composition and major programs of the festival were revealed at the meeting. The 2025 Korean Dream Hangang Festival is a large-scale unification wish festival involving more than 10,000 citizens and consists of ▶ a civic ceremony commemorating the 80th anniversary of Liberation ▶ a unification grand chorus involving 1,000 volunteer citizens ▶'New Era Unification Song Campaign' Anniversary Song Announcement ▶ Large-scale drone art show.
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| Photo provided = Korean Dream Hangang Festival Organizing Committee |
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The biggest attraction is the 1,200-strong drone art show on the Han River. The organizing committee has been producing drones by raising civic donations since March under the theme of 「Fly your own unified drone」. Thousands of citizens joined in. It will be held as a participatory performance that floats each and every one of the people's hopes for unification.
At the meeting on this day, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the unification song campaign of the new era, the seventh new song produced by Hong Dae-sung, who was in charge of music such as the movie "Lady" and "Taxi Driver", 's song was also released for the first time.
The Song of Unification campaign of the New Era has been a cultural unification movement involving hundreds of stars including BTS Jungkook, EXO Baekhyun, Peabo Bryson, and Insooni since 2015, and 'One Dream One Korea' has drawn great attention as a farewell song for the 2018 inter-Korean summit and also included in middle school music textbooks.
Marking its 10th anniversary, this year was completed with the singing of four female vocalists from Voice Korea 'Son Ji-yu' (Son Seung-yeon, Lee Ye-jun, Ji Se-hee, and Yoo Seong-eun) and a performance with the Seoul Grand Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Seo-hoon, and will be officially announced on stage with citizens at the festival site on August 15.
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| "2025 Korea Dream Hangang Festival' at the press conference held on the 19th floor of the Korea Press Center!>The sound source was first released through a making video. Photo courtesy = Korean Dream Hangang Festival Organizing Committee |
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| "2025 Korea Dream Hangang Festival' at the press conference held on the 19th floor of the Korea Press Center!> The ordained conductor of the Seoul Grand Philharmonic Orchestra, who took over the overall position of orchestra performance, is speaking. From left, Hong Dae-sung, music director, Seo Hoon, singer Yoo Seong-eun, singer Ji Se-hee, and singer Lee Ye-eun Photo courtesy of Korean Dream Hangang Festival Organizing Committee |
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The organizing committee also released the results of a survey on unification awareness and the new government's unification policy conducted on 600 civic group officials. Fifty-three percent of the respondents predicted that "Unification is possible within 10 years" and 21.7 percent said "It is possible within 20 years". In addition, 90.9% of the respondents expressed strong sympathy for the need for unification.
"Over the past 80 years, we have written a miraculous history of achieving industrialization and democratization at the same time, overcoming the pain of Japanese occupation. It is time to move toward national unity, sustainable shared growth, and peaceful unification. The upcoming festival will be a place of hope and harmony that brings together the aspirations of the times. "
Chairman of the Co-organizing Committee Jung Woo-taek said in a greeting, `I think the 80th anniversary of liberation is an important turning point in preparing for the future toward peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula"'2025 Korean Dream Hangang Festival' will be a historical site that presents the vision of national harmony and unification.'"
Lee Jong-kyul, co-chairman of the organizing committee, said "We have overcome many challenges and crises over the course of the Japanese occupation in 36 and the 80 years since then. Through the 2025 Korea Dream Hangang Festival, we hope to overcome the pain of division and create a future of peace that everyone dreams of together."
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| Around the map of the Korean Peninsula containing the faces of citizens who participated in the donation with the desire for unification, campaign officials are taking commemorative photos with a message card saying 'Unification beyond the miracle of the Han River'. Photo courtesy = Korean Dream Hangang Festival Organizing Committee |
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Seo In-taek, Chairman of the Organizing Committee, said "This Korean Dream Hangang Festival is a unification movement from below organized and led by civil society, not by politics or the government. Based on the Korean dream vision of realizing a unified Korea, it will be a festival of peace that will be made with people around the world."
Meanwhile, the organizing committee is recruiting participation in the citizen's grand choir and drone show sponsorship through the official website and SNS of the Korea Dream 10 million campaign.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
