Annual General Meeting, 20th March 2014

Written by: Ian Simm  |  Posted on: April 11th, 2014

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Jim Thomson presents his outreach report

This year’s AGM was held on 20 March at the Korean Cultural Centre. In his report Chairman Warwick Morris welcomed Minister Kim Chang-soo and First Secretary Kim Hyun-du from the ROK Embassy, representing our Joint President Ambassador Sungnam Lim, and acknowledged the Embassy’s support.

He also welcomed our British Joint President Dr Robert Hawley and his wife. He warmly thanked KCC Director Kim Kab-soo and his staff for acting as hosts to the Society’s events and their ongoing help. Also very welcome was Charles Hay, who has been appointed the next British Ambassador in Seoul and will take up his post in early 2015. The Chairman reported that the Society has had a successful year, with a range of well-supported events, a stable membership and its finances in good shape. He thanked the committee for its work over the year, particularly noting the work of Stephen Brown in ensuring renewed sponsorship from Samsung Electronics and Diageo. We also received a generous donation from the ROK Embassy towards the cost of the annual dinner.

The committee will continue to serve with the exception of Miriam Chung who first joined 20 years ago but is now standing down owing to her other commitments. She will continue to be the Society’s point of contact with Oxford University. Dr Hyunick Kim will join the committee this year, but the Chairman appealed for other members to consider joining.

Sadly, a former committee member, Peter Corbishley and another loyal member, Brigadier Dennis Williams, passed away during the year.

Highlights of the year included the Chuseok reception hosted by Ambassador Sungnam Lim, and the Annual Dinner at the House of Lords addressed by Ambassador Lim and FCO Minister Hugo Swire. Warwick noted the importance of 2013 which marked the 60th anniversary of the Armistice which ended the Korean war, the 130th anniversary of UK-Korea diplomatic relations and the state visit to Britain by President Park Geun-hye. He further noted that the website, though already important to the society’s public communication, would be revamped, and a new logo designed. Chairman’s Report 2014

Treasurer Chris Hollands reported that the finances of the Society were strong, with sponsorship funding received on time and subscription income stable. Overall we make a small subsidy to events, but as the Chairman had reported we had been able to increase the number and value of bursaries, in part owing to the generous donation from Dr and Mrs Hawley (who were present at the AGM). Expanding on this theme, Jim Thomson said that the Society had awarded grants of some £4000, and funded bursaries to a similar level. Our grants were largely small and offered to organisations or individuals who submitted ideas; he noted that we by no means agreed all requests. This year, among other events, we helped fund the international Go (or, in Korean, Baduk) championships with the result that the British Go Association have become corporate members.

Introducing this year’s events, Sylvia Park drew attention to the London Book Fair, 8-10 April, where Korea would be the market focus. Sue King, our very own Blue Badge Guide, will be leading another London tour, this time around Bloomsbury. Laura Devine Solicitors will host a reception on July and we are delighted that Ambassador Lim and his wife will again host our Chuseok reception in September. This year, the House of Lords get together in November will take the form of a reception.

Colonel George Gadd delivered a report to the meeting on behalf of the British Korean Veterans’ Association. He noted with sadness that this was probably to be the last time he would address the Society as the BKVA would be wound up later this year, following the erection of the Korean War Memorial in October, and the planned laying-up of standards in York Minster. The ground breaking ceremony for the memorial in November 2013 had been attended by HE President Park Geun-hye.

At an EGM preceding the AGM in October, the BKVA membership, at the recommendation of the committee, voted to disband the association during 2014. Col Gadd attended the general assembly of the International Federation of Korean War Veterans Associations in Seoul, but felt that the IFKWVA’s decision to include associations working only with relatives and friends of veterans would dilute the impact so much that he resigned from the federation. BKVA is also uneasy about the makeup of a new British Korean War Veterans Association separate from BKVA. Some BKVA members have said that they will not join the new organisation but, following the formal disbandment of BKVA, will continue to meet as social clubs. BKVA_Report 2014

Following the Committee election, the AGM considered a motion from the Committee to change the name of the Society to the British – Korean Society. This change was recommended to take place alongside the establishment of the new website and logo, and was rooted in the sense that the Anglo- prefix is outdated and does not represent the whole population of the UK. Notwithstanding a suggestion that we await the result of the Scottish Referendum, the motion was carried by a very substantial majority.

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