Kwak Tong Ui, chairman of the Overseas Side Committee for Implementing the June 15 Joint Declaration, recalled that last year all Koreans waged a dynamic struggle to uphold and implement the June 15 joint declaration, a milestone for reunification, and the October 4 declaration, a programme for implementing it, and achieve independent reunification of the country.

This year the Koreans overseas are facing an important task to put an end to the south Korean authorities' policy of confrontation with the DPRK and open the gates of national reunification under the banner of the "By the Korean nation itself" whose ideal is national independence and the great national unity, he said.

Rim Min Sik, secretary general of the Joint Secretariat of the Pan-national Alliance for Korea's Reunification, said the Koreans should achieve the reunification of the country by the concerted efforts of Koreans and common prosperity in one and the same country so that they may lead a happy life all together.

He called on the Koreans overseas to pool efforts to take the lead in the movement for national reunification.

Ro Kil Nam, representative of Minjok Thongsin, an internet paper of Koreans in the U.S., underscored the need to achieve national independence and peaceful reunification at the earliest possible date.

To this end, all the Koreans at home and abroad should firmly join hands and display the tremendous might of the great national unity irrespective of ideology and ism, political view and religion, class and stratum, he added.

Choe Yong Suk, chairperson of the European Solidarity of Korean Nation, expressed hope that democratic forces would surely emerge victorious in "the National Assembly" and "presidential" elections slated to take place in south Korea this year to contribute to bringing earlier reunification.

Kim Ji Yong, chairperson of the south Korean Democratic Women's Society in Japan, underlined the need to dynamically advance this year, too, to achieve national reunification by the concerted efforts of Koreans on the basis of the achievements and experience gained last year.

Mun Se Hyon, chairman of the south Korean Youth League in Japan, called on the young Koreans in Japan to make redoubled efforts to put spurs to the movement for independence, democracy and reunification.