Suwon City Files for Recognition of Local Independence Movement Activists

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Seo Dong-young] Suwon City filed applications with the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs on the 9th for the recognition of 15 independence movement activists from the Suwon area.

The 15 individuals are priority targets whose achievements were revealed through the Gyeonggi Province Independence Movement Figures Excavation Project conducted jointly by Suwon Museum and the Suwon Research Center for Suwon Studies at the Suwon City Institute for Research. Despite having clear records of independence movement activities, recognition applications had not been filed, so Suwon City stepped forward on behalf of their descendants. From 2017 to 2018, Suwon Museum and the Suwon Research Center for Suwon Studies conducted an excavation project that identified 113 previously unknown independence movement activists from the Suwon area.

The independence activists for whom applications were filed include An Chun-gyeong (armed resistance, 1878–?), Lee Hee-gyeong (March 1st Movement, 1899–?), Lee Nam-gyu (March 1st Movement, 1897–?), Kim Young-jin (March 1st Movement, 1893–?), Yoo Byung-gi (domestic activities, 1895–?), Ku Hyun-seo (domestic activities, 1921–?), Lee Yun-gang (domestic activities, 1889–?), Park Ki-seo (domestic anti-Japanese, 1891–?), Hong Jong-gap (domestic anti-Japanese, 1901–?), Jang Ju-mun (domestic anti-Japanese, 1904–?), Jeong Cheong-san (domestic activities, 1909–?), Cha Gye-young (student activism, 1913–1946), Lee Mu-so (domestic anti-Japanese, 1902–?), Choi Gyeong-chang (domestic anti-Japanese, unknown), and Hong Jong-ye (domestic anti-Japanese, 1919–?).

An Chun-gyeong conducted armed resistance activities in areas such as Gwangdeok-myeon and Cheongryong-myeon of Suwon County before being arrested by Japanese police and sentenced to seven years of imprisonment. During the March 1st Movement, three students—Lee Hee-gyeong, Lee Nam-gyu, and Kim Young-jin—participated in independence rallies, marching around Tapgol Park and Seoul Station. Yoo Byung-gi was sentenced to one year of imprisonment for his involvement in the Sincheonji incident.

Ku Hyun-seo, Lee Yun-gang, Park Ki-seo, Hong Jong-gap, Jang Ju-mun, Jeong Cheong-san, Cha Gye-young, Lee Mu-so, Choi Gyeong-chang, and Hong Jong-ye were imprisoned for their involvement in fundraising for independence funds, propagandist activities, and incidents related to radical labor unions, radical farmer associations, and the reconstruction of the Korean Communist Party.

The city has secured recognition for independence movement activists including Kim Hyang-hwa (2019), who led the independence rally organized by gisaeng (courtesans) in Suwon; Lee Seon-gyeong (2010), known as the "Yoo Gwan-sun of Suwon," who led a secret resistance movement at age 19 and died for the nation; and Choi Moon-soon (2018), who engaged in secret resistance activities with the Gukuk Mdan alongside Lee Seon-gyeong.

Yeum Tae-young, Mayor of Suwon, said, "Thanks to the dedication of independence activists, our descendants after liberation have been able to preserve the identity of the Republic of Korea," and emphasized, "Local governments and the nation must take the lead in actively excavating unknown independence activists, remembering and commemorating them."

He continued, "Suwon City will continue to unearth unnamed independence activists and file applications with the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs to bring them to the attention of the world."