The Gwangju Democracy Forum (GDF) 2023 is an annual international meeting locally hosted by the May 18 Foundation to bring together democracy advocates, human rights defenders, activists, researchers, and policy-makers to discuss and reflect on the challenges of democracy at the local, national, and global levels as a way to commemorate the spirit of May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising in 1980 in today’s global context.

The climate crises and natural disasters are affecting the global ecosystem and are bringing about various incidents. In addition, people are concerned with the increasing Cold War like environment with a rise of dictators and authoritarians causing the backsliding of democracy.

The growing tensions among superpowers challenges the effectiveness of the United Nations (UN) which was established after the Second World War to prevent these conflicts. Moreover, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Myanmar’s military coup that is currently in progress proves the very overshadowing of internationally agreed treaties and measures.

In the Outcome Document of the 2005 World Summit, unanimously adopted by the General Assembly, the world agreed "that while democracies share common features, there is no single model of democracy, that it does not belong to any country or region (Resolution 60/1)." The document poses a serious question about the chaotic international order and the UN’s role in the current situation. We can’t help but ask if the role and function of the UN are still valid?

During the GDF 2023, we will discuss what is needed in leading to a new order to overcome the chaos and to find ways to restore democracy under the theme Solidarity for Democracy and Human Rights Defenders.

We will include the following in the discussions; 1) country/region state of democracy 2) countermeasures against humanitarian crises caused by war and the climate crisis 3) civic participation and the rebuilding of democracy for people. The outcome of the GDF 2023 will be used as input to develop the 2030 Gwangju Agenda for Democracy (GAD) which will be the guide for action to prepare for the 50th anniversary of the May 18 Democratic Uprising in 2030.

A youth component will be implemented for youth who are active in the field of democracy, human rights, and peace in South Korea. The Youth-GDF (Y-GDF) will be held from May 14 to 15 prior to the GDF 2023 event.

All GDF participants will attend the 43rd Anniversary of the May 18 Democratic Uprising National ceremony and the Gwangju Prize for Human Rights(GPHR) Awards ceremony on May 18.

Democracy and human rights are essential elements to us living in the 21st century to the extent that our survival is threatened without them. The various phenomena caused by the destruction of international promises to protect democracy and human rights, such as the invasion of Ukraine, the US-China conflict, Myanmar’s military regression, European conservatives, and the backsliding of Asia countries’ democracy, seem to be a century-old chaos. The crisis of democracy and human rights violations limits civil society's activities and restricts civic space. It is time for in-depth discussions to find causes and ways to overcome them.

The transitional justice mechanism, which began in South America in the 1980s, has striven to find truth slowly to restore victims' rights and punish perpetrators in all countries where there has been State violence. With tragic events such as impunity or the return of the military regime still taking place, this year's GDF will deal with the issue of transitional justice from the victim’s perspective, not from the political and social aspects.

The UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 16+ include peace and justice, in other words, promoting a peaceful and inclusive society for sustainable development, providing access to justice for all, and building an effective, responsible, and inclusive system. In particular, the GDF aims to deal with freedom of speech and information, the government's accountability, and civic participation in implementing election justice.

Global Human Rights Defenders Day (17 May) is to address the main challenges, threats, and opportunities for human rights defenders as a way to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders and Asia Human Rights Charter (1998), the 30th anniversary of the World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna (1993) and 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) (1948). Strategic engagements with UN human rights mechanisms including the UN Special Rapporteurs on HRD, transitional justice, climate change, etc. will be addressed to protect and strengthen the role of HRDs. It is expected to be organized in partnership with relevant international organizations and public institutions such as UN Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

Human rights are inseparable from democracy. We will discuss challenges and threats to human rights defenders working in various fields. We invite human rights defenders who work in these fields, including climate, migrants, refugees, and the rights of the disabled, and will gather in Gwangju to build a network of activists and human rights organizations.