The 75th anniversary of Jeju 4·3 and the Yeo-Sun incident and the 43rd anniversary of the Gwangju Democratization Movement jointly commemorated

A special concert was held to offer beautiful melodies, which were accompanied by the warm sea breeze of May. Under the theme of “Spring Again, From April 3 to May,” the event took place on May 28 at the Tapdong Seaside Concert Hall to jointly commemorate the 75th anniversary of Jeju 4·3 and the Yeo-Sun incident and the 43rd anniversary of the Gwangju Democratization Movement.

The annual concert has been held since 2021 for the purpose of remembering the painful history of Jeju 4·3, the Yeo-Sun incident, and the Gwangju Democratization Movement and of sharing the values of peace, human rights, democracy, and cohesion. The event organizes its performances alternately in the related cities, and this year, Jeju was in charge of the opening performance.

The concert is hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Gwangju Metropolitan City. The organizers include the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation, the Gwangju Cultural Foundation (CEO: Hwang Pung-nyeon), and the Yeosu Symphony Orchestra (Representative: Moon Jeong-suk). The concert combines creative content from Jeju, Gwangju, and Yeosu, featuring original songs from operas with the themes of the historical events from the three cities. “Sun-i Samch’on” was adopted from Hyun Ki-young’s Jeju 4·3 novel with the same title, and “Silence in 1948” re-examines the Yeo-Sun incident and the pain that the victims suffered. “Gwangju” was motivated by “March for Our Beloved,” a song composed in memory of the victims of the Gwangju Democratization Movement.

In the opening speech, Koh Hee-bum, president of the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation, referred to the Korean saying that sharing halves the pain and doubles the joy. “I hope this concert will create an opportunity to halve the pain of Jeju 4·3, the Yeo-Sun incident, and the Gwangju Democratization Movement by sharing it with the whole nation, and to double the joy of having the events be recognized as proud chapters of Korean history,” he said.

When printing the brochures, the organizers used recycled pulp to reduce paper waste, and the eco-friendly technique of monochrome output minimized ink usage. The performance also provided sign language interpretation and subtitles for those with accessibility issues.

Gwangju staged the performance on May 30 at the Bitgoeul Citizen Cultural Center, and the Yeosu event is scheduled to be held at 7 p.m. on Oct. 11 (Wednesday) in the Grand Auditorium of the Yeulmaru Art Center.

The Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation and the State Rehabilitation Management Commission, a Mongolian state agency that has exonerated 27,000 out of 31,000 victims of events which occurred during the country’s transition period, signed a memorandum of understanding on April 3. The Mongolian delegation, led by Odontuya Saldan, chairwoman of Mongolia’s State Rehabilitation Management Commission and vice-chairwoman of the Mongolian Parliament, shared the experiences of the two regions that created best practices for resolving past history issues and discussed measures for academic exchange and solidarity.

During Mongolia’s transition period from communism to its democratization between 1921 and 1990, the Great Purge was also committed, in which civilians were killed on a large scale due to state violence. In December 1990, the State Rehabilitation Management Commission was established in accordance with the relevant Presidential Decree for the investigation of the truth, compensation for damage, and education on the lessons learned.

The commission is still active and has restored honor to 27,000 out of 31,000 deceased victims. Compensation of 0.5-1.0 million Tugriks (about 200,000 to 400,000 won) per person has been paid to some 18,000 people, including victims and their bereaved families. The commission also carries out memorial projects, such as investigating the truth, building a database, installing monuments, holding exhibitions of relics, publishing books and compilations, and producing documentary films.

According to Chairwoman Saldan, not only the commission but also the Mongolian government place great significance on the new relationship with the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation because this is the first time for the commission to attempt overseas benchmarking and cooperation since its establishment. “We will gratefully learn from the Jeju case and are looking forward to building strong cooperation,” she said.

After attending the memorial ceremony marking the 75th anniversary of Jeju 4·3, the Mongolian delegation held the opening ceremony of the Special Exhibition of the State Rehabilitation Management Commission at the gatepost monument of the Jeju 4·3 Peace Park.

50 recipients announced, with Kim Hyeon-nyeo, aged 102, being the oldest

Recipients include 4 spouses of deceased victims, 1 surviving victim of unlawful imprisonment, and 9 victims with residual disabilities

The Jeju 4·3 Parents Awards have been awarded to 50 elderly people who overcame the pain and agony after the tragedy of Jeju 4·3 and helped Jeju be advanced until this stage.

On May 21, the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation held the Jeju 4·3 Parents Awards ceremony at the grand auditorium of the Jeju 4·3 Peace Education Center.

From February to April, the foundation reviewed meritorious achievements of the candidates who had been recommended by related institutions and organizations, including the Association for the Bereaved Families of Jeju 4·3 Victims, the Association of Jeju 4·3 Victims with Residual Disabilities, Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Police Veterans Association, and the Jeju 4·3 Research Institute. The recipients were selected among survivors of Jeju 4·3 and victims’ elderly family members aged 85 or older. Four of them are the spouses of deceased victims, one survived unlawful imprisonment, and nine people suffer from residual disabilities due to Jeju 4·3. The oldest recipient is Kim Hyeon-nyeo, a female victim aged 102 years old (Ara-dong, Jeju City).

The award ceremony was attended by some 300 people, including award recipients and their families. Koh Hee-bum, president of the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation, and Kim Chang-beom, chairman of the Association of the Bereaved Families of Jeju 4·3 Victims, presented commendation plaques, prize money certificates, and bouquets with gratitude and respect.

Those who have endured not only the damage due to Jeju 4·3 but also the difficult time afterwards said they felt rewarded when receiving the awards and shared an overwhelming joy with their family members. Many of them were reminded of tearful memories, such as where one person’s parents and grandparents were killed by the counterinsurgency forces and another survived the gunshot wounds she received when she hadn’t even passed her first birthday. There was also a victim’s son who has suffered from trauma since he carried his dead father home on an ox cart after he was killed at Jeongbang Waterfalls. Many of the recipients were innocent but had to serve prison terms; the others had to make a living for their families since childhood.

For those recipients who were unable to attend the award ceremony due to health reasons, president Koh visited them individually and delivered plaques and bouquets. Among them, Park Cheon-gil, who lost his father and brother at the time of Jeju 4·3 and was left to support his elderly mother and make a living for his family, wiped his tears by placing a bouquet next to his mother’s portrait, saying that his mother was very fond of flowers when she was alive.

Since 2009, the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation has presented the Jeju 4·3 Parents Awards to console and encourage victims and their bereaved families who have overcome the hardships of Jeju 4·3. Normally, 30 people are selected to receive the awards, but marking the 75th anniversary this year, 20 more people were added to the list of recipients, to give an opportunity to receive the award when even one more elderly victim or bereaved family member is still alive.

▲ Surviving victim (victim of Unlawful Imprisonment)

△ Yang Ok-nyeon (female, 96)

▲ Surviving victims (victim with residual disabilities)

△ Kang Il-hwa (female, 88) △ Ko Choon-ja (female, 80) △ Gyeong-saeng (female, 93) △ Kim Soon-yeo (female, 79) △ Seo Geun-sook (female, 83) △ Song Gap-su (male, 91) △ Yang Su-ja (female, 81) △ Jeong Gwi-ja (female, 77) △ Hong Soon-gong (female, 93)

▲ Victims’ spouses

△ Kim Gi-saeng (female, 98) △ Kim Man-ok (female, 99) △ Kim Hyeon-nyeo (female, 102) △ Byeon Jeong-rang (female, 96)

▲ Victims’ elderly family members (36 people)

△ Kang Gi-hoon (male, 86) △ Kang Jong-seok (male, 86) △ Kang Pyeong-ok (male, 89) △ Ko Yeong-cheol (male, 93) △ Ko Yoon-bae (male, 87) △ Kim Dae-ok (male, 91) △ Kim Myeong-seon (female, 89) △ Kim Soon-a (female, 91) △ Kim Eung-bin (male, 85) △ Kim Il-seong (female, 89) △ Kim Jeong-a (female, 88) △ Kim Jeong-hee (female, 88) △ Kim Choon-ja (female, 88) △ Park Yeong-chan (male, 90) △ Park Jeong-soon (female, 88) △ Park Cheon-gil (male, 87) △ Park Choon-hwa (female, 92) △ Byeon Su-bang (male, 85), △ Song Soon-ja (female, 85) △ Yang Gyeong-ho (male, 87) △ Yang Soon-nyeo (female, 85) △ Oh Hee-sook (female, 87) △ Yoon Sam-nye (female, 96) △ Lee Yeong-ja (female, 90) △ Lee Won-seok (male, 88) △ Lee Jang-hyeon (male, 87) △ Lim Gwan-sook (male, 86) △ Lim Sang-nyeol, 86) △ Lim Seong-in (female, 87) △ Jang Soon-nyeo (female, 87) △ Jeong Dae-jin (male, 86) △ Jeong Hong-nam (male, 87) △ Cha Gyeong-gu (female, 89) △ Hong Man-hyeon (male, 87) △ Hong Eul-saeng (female, 89) △ Hong Choon-ho (female, 86)