(Unofficial Translation)

Fellow Koreans, decorated patriots and veterans, and the families of fallen heroes,

Today marks the 65th Memorial Day in this year of the 70th anniversary of the Korean War. This is a day to contemplate the fact that independence and the defense of our country are the roots of the patriotism that has built and safeguarded the country.

The freedom and prosperity we enjoy today rest upon the dedication and sacrifice of our fallen patriotic forebears and the guardian spirits of those who gave their all to the country in their prime. Each and every one of them laid to rest here built today’s Republic of Korea.

I pay respect to the souls of patriots and those who served the nation with distinction. I also extend my deepest sympathy and gratitude to the bereaved families.

My fellow Koreans,

It is very meaningful that we have replaced the Daejeon National Cemetery signboard with one bearing the handwriting of patriotic martyr Ahn Jung-geun. The last calligraphy he left behind read “To sacrifice for the country is the duty of a soldier.” This is the exemplary model of the military spirit that has been passed on through the Korean Liberation Army to our armed forces today.

This year marks the 110th anniversary of the martyrdom of Ahn Jung-geun. I am confident that the noble spirit of this patriotic martyr, who resolutely faced death for Korea’s freedom and independence as well as peace in Asia, will join the souls of all fallen patriots.

Tomorrow, we will celebrate the centennial of the victory against imperial Japan’s army in the battle of Fengwudong. One hundred years ago, on June 7, 1920, a combined independence army led by General Hong Beom-do and General Choi Jin-dong achieved the first great victory of our war of independence in Fengwudong, Manchuria. In October of the same year, another combined independence army primarily led by General Kim Jwa-jin and General Hong Beom-do accomplished the greatest victory in the history of our war of independence – the battle of Qingshanli.

The independence armies became the root of the Korean Liberation Army founded in 1940 by the Provisional Republic of Korea Government. In 2018, the Ministry of National Defense officially confirmed that those independence armies and the Korean Liberation Army are the origin of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

After liberation, many members of those independence armies and the Korean Liberation Army joined the Armed Forces. They fought in the Korean War, delivering the spirit of independence to the call for defending the country. General Kim Hong-il, who had served as chief of staff of the Korean Liberation Army, commanded battles to keep the defense line along the Hangang River. The general and his troops fought to the best of their abilities and staved off the North Korean forces’ southward advance, setting a turning point for counterattacks.

Lieutenant Colonel Jang Chul-bu of the Korean Liberation Army’s commando unit served as the commander of a cavalry battalion during the Korean War. He distinguished himself highly in many battles, but on August 4, 1950, he himself brought his 29 years to an end to avoid becoming a prisoner of war just before the enemy gained control of his battalion’s command post. He has been laid to rest here at the Daejeon National Cemetery.

Besides those troops who fought with valor and sacrificed their lives, there are unsung heroes who devoted themselves to treating injured soldiers. First Lieutenant Lee Hyeon-won, the granddaughter of independence activist Lee Sang-seol, became one of the first graduates of the Korea Armed Forces Nursing Academy and was commissioned in March 1953 to participate in the war. When the number of nursing officers was severely short, she devoted herself to caring for troops.

She has not let her meritorious contributions be known. I met her in Russia in September 2017 during a meeting with members of the local Korean community. Today, I am very pleased to present her with a certificate for persons of national merit, reflecting the people’s appreciation. I’d like to ask everyone to give her a warm round of applause as she is here with us.

The late Captain Oh Geum-son, the daughter of an independence army member, served as a nursing officer in the “White Skull” unit during the Korean War. After retirement from the military, she looked after patients in remote areas and indigent independence activists. The late Colonel Kim Pil-dal, who rests in peace here, was also commissioned as a nursing officer in November 1950 and participated in the Korean War and the Vietnam War. She later served as the head of the Nursing Corps.

Even in the most precarious and desperate moments, soldiers were able to harbor hope that they may live thanks to nursing officers. These officers practiced the spirit of the soldiers’ duty to sacrifice for their country, and today –70 years later – their successors continue to uphold that spirit.

On March 3 this year, 75 just-commissioned graduates of the 60th class of the Korea Armed Forces Nursing Academy headed to Daegu – where an uphill battle against COVID-19 was underway.

Second Lieutenant Lee Hye-min, who read aloud the Pledge of Allegiance to the Korean national flag today, said during that day’s commissioning ceremony, “Following in the footsteps of my grandfather, a Korean War veteran, I will fulfill my duty, determined to dedicate my life for the people and the military.”

All 75 of those newly commissioned nursing officers confidently fulfilled their duties, thereby bringing a great sense of courage and pride to our people.
 
Our military has committed itself to fighting COVID-19, standing by the people. More than 200,000 soldiers have worked hard to protect the people’s safety and health by supporting supply transport, disinfection, infectious disease prevention and control, and quarantine inspection at airports and ports, among other measures. Military personnel were also the first to roll up their sleeves to donate blood. I believe that our patriotic forebears and the fallen heroes who died protecting our homeland are proud of our military, which has fulfilled its duty by preventing and controlling the spread of an infectious disease while maintaining an impregnable security posture. As Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, I also feel truly reassured by and proud of our soldiers as they have stood by the people.

Fellow Koreans,

Major Lim Chun-soo was killed in July 1951 in the battle of Yanggu, Gangwon-do Province. Until the very last moment, he held a picture from his daughter’s first birthday and an unsent letter close to his heart. Today, 70 years later, his daughter Im Wook-ja read aloud her reply to her father.

Major Lim’s letter tells us that love for family provides the power to protect the homeland, and his daughter’s reply tells us that the hero who safeguarded the country was an “ordinary father who loved his family a lot.”

These letters prove that the Korean War is not history from the past but “living” history connected to our lives today. With as much weight as the nation’s official records, they attest to the history of patriotism and national defense being the history of one individual and one family.

The Republic of Korea that “I,” “my family” and “my neighbors” have protected has now become the invaluable “my homeland” and “a country that belongs to all of us.” Peace is a right that the people deserve to enjoy. Creating a peaceful Korean Peninsula that never sees war again is the responsibility the people have entrusted to the country.

To preserve and establish peace, the Government will do all it can for a stronger national defense and more robust security. We will forever remember those who have built today’s Republic of Korea and etch them into the chapters of our history.

On the occasion of Memorial Day today, I’d also like to join the people in remembering Assistant Deputy Director Shin Chang-seop and Deputy Director Pi Jae-ho. They died in the line of duty protecting the lives and safety of the public from COVID-19. May their souls rest in peace, and I extend my deepest condolences to their bereaved families.

In July last year, the Government launched the Korean War Military Merit Medal Recipients Search Group. The Group is identifying some 56,000 people of merit and their bereaved families in order to bestow Orders of Military Merit and certificates for persons of national merit. Officials had decided to award these decorations during the Korean War but failed to bestow them. To date, the Group has found about 5,000 people of merit and has delivered medals to those still alive. It is significant to present the certificate for persons of national merit to Kim Jong-hyo. As a reserve sergeant, he received the Hwarang Order of Military Merit, but he was never given his certificate. We will strive to deliver these medals and certificates to as many veterans as possible while they are still with us.

Kim Yeong-chang took part in the War as a civilian member of the special forces of the U.S. Far East Command and hence had no service record. Despite this, we discovered his accomplishments and presented him the certificate for persons of national merit today. We will also uncover and honor the feats of some 32,000 commandos whose names and ranks were never recorded.

The Government will continue the project to excavate remains. The late staff sergeants Park Jae-gwon, Namgung Seon and Kim Gi-bong, fallen Korean War soldiers found last year along Arrowhead Ridge in the Demilitarized Zone, have been interred here at the Daejeon National Cemetery. The Hwarang Order of Military Merit was delivered to the son of the late Sergeant Jeong Yeong-jin. After a long wait, 90-year-old Lee Bun-ae, who raised a son herself after the War tore her young family apart, has been reunited with the remains of her husband Sergeant Kim Jin-gu. Three days ago, on June 3, a ceremony to return his remains was held at the memorial to fallen soldiers in Daegu’s Apsan Park.

We were able to meet these heroes again thanks to their relatives having participated in genetic testing. A brother of the late Sergeant Kim Jin-gu provided DNA in 2006 in the strong belief that this would lead to the discovery of the remains. 

The Government has unearthed the remains of an estimated additional 67 bodies along Arrowhead Ridge this year. To confirm the identities of these unearthed soldiers who sacrificed themselves for the defense of the country, we need their bereaved relatives’ DNA. I ask their loved ones to actively participate. The Government will do its utmost, so soldiers who defended the country can be returned to the arms of their families.  

Fellow Koreans, decorated patriots and bereaved families,

The country must repay all of the dedication and sacrifices without fail.

For the past three years, our Government has provided living assistance to persons of national merit and their bereaved relatives and done everything it could to reward their patriotism so that their spirit could be remembered and passed on. We will provide support in order to allow those who rendered distinguished service to the nation and their bereaved families to live honorable lives by continuing to increase cost-of-living payments and veteran honor allowances. We will also further strengthen medical assistance.

Currently, a columbarium that can hold 49,000 urns for cremated remains is being built in the Daejeon National Cemetery. Capacity will be expanded nationwide from 350,000 to 440,000 urns by the end of next year and to 540,000 urns by the end of 2025 to allow persons of national merit to be honored with the utmost respect.   

At a June 2 Cabinet Meeting, we passed an enforcement decree of an act on compensation for military personnel injuries. It is very significant that we further strengthen the nation’s responsibility for the dedication and sacrifices of soldiers. As a result, the compensation soldiers receive for general disabilities will increase sharply, and that for disabilities arising from battle will become two and a half times the amount provided for general disabilities. We have unified pension payments for bereaved families into a single rate regardless of the length of service. A newly introduced system factors in the number of bereaved family members in order to provide larger families with commensurate payments.

Rewarding the patriotism of persons of national merit and bereaved families is one of the Government’s most important policy tasks. This is because providing them welfare assistance is not only the country’s most basic duty but also a source of patriotism that can even inspire people to sacrifice their lives.

The independence and defense of our homeland is the root of the Republic of Korea we relish today. Pride from safeguarding the country was revived in the form of democracy and has inspired numerous righteous people to sacrifice themselves for their families and neighbors.

The souls who fought for independence, the defense of our country and democracy practiced patriotism in each era. They generated a new spirit of the times and waves of dynamic history. Our patriotism is becoming stronger today through mutual understanding and respect. It is broadening the path of mutually beneficial cooperation as we make concessions and compromise with each other.  

Ordinary neighbors – someone’s sons and daughters as well as fathers and mothers – are the patriotic souls who’ve made us what we are today.

I pay profound respect once again to our patriots’ souls, deeply etching in my heart the potential of our people who have written chapters in the history of independence, national defense and democracy.

Thank you.