KB News Desk
The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs has launched a campaign honoring Korean independence activists who died overseas before they could return to their liberated home, ahead of the 81st anniversary of Korea’s liberation on Aug. 15.
The “Korea’s Brightest Passport” campaign commemorates 30 patriots who died overseas before witnessing Korea’s liberation from Japanese occupation that lasted from 1910 to 1945. The campaign, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the food and beverage company Binggrae, continues throughout the month.
The design is based on the Korean passport and features the patriot’s photo and identification, along with designs representing records of independence movements, the national flag, Harbin Railway Station, Sinheung Military School and Dongnip Sinmun, a newspaper published by the Korean provisional government in Shanghai.
Harbin Railway Station in China is where Ahn Jung-geun assassinated Ito Hirobumi, the resident general of the Japanese imperial government, in 1909, and Sinheung Military School was the institution where independence fighters were trained.
“Every independence patriot who dedicated everything for the nation’s freedom but never could return home is a hero that Korea must remember forever,” Patriots and Veterans Affairs Minister Kwon Oh-eul said. “I hope the campaign serves as a meaningful opportunity for people to reflect on their noble sacrifices.”
A total of 30 independence activists whose remains have not yet been repatriated, including Ahn Jung-geun, Lee Ae-ra and Park Young-hee, will be honored in the campaign.
The ministry said Tuesday that the honorary passports were presented to the descendants of some patriots on July 18 at the Independence Hall of Korea at an event he attended, along with Independence Hall President Kim Hee-gon and officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Binggrae.
A promotional video for the campaign has been released on the ministry and Binggrae’s social media platforms. It will also be shown on television and media walls at Incheon Airport Terminal 2 and Seoul National Cemetery.
The campaign is the latest in a series of joint campaigns by the ministry and Binggrae, known for its banana-flavored milk and Melona ice cream, to commemorate Liberation Day.
