Petition Letters by Hansen's Disease Patients Advocating Freedom and Human Rights to Become Cultural Heritage

'Goheung Sorokdo 4·6 Incident Petition and Statement' and Others Announced for Cultural Heritage Registration
'Seoul Jingwansa Temple's Hanging Scroll and Hanging Scroll Box' Reflecting Modern Techniques Also Designated as Cultural Heritage

Petition Regarding the April 6 Incident on Sorokdo, Goheung

The records of the Sorokdo 4·6 Incident will be registered as cultural heritage.

On the 5th, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced the preliminary registration of the 'Petition and Statement of the Goheung Sorokdo 4·6 Incident' and the 'Artifacts of the Noksan Medical Training Center in Goheung Sorokdo' as cultural heritage. Opinions from various sectors will be collected for a month, and a review will be conducted to finalize the registration decision.

The Petition and Statement of the Goheung Sorokdo 4·6 Incident are records containing the voices of freedom and human rights from the inmates of Sorokdo Rehabilitation Center (currently National Sorokdo Hospital) who resisted injustice and human rights violations. The Sorokdo 4·6 Incident was a large-scale protest that occurred in the early 1950s due to an increase in inmates and a reduction in relief supplies caused by the war. The inmates opposed the coercive and authoritarian management system of Director Kim Sang-tae of the Rehabilitation Center and demanded a vote of no confidence.

The inmates detailed the inhumane conditions on Sorokdo and the misconduct of Director Kim in this petition and statement. The Cultural Heritage Administration explained, "It informs about the progress and details of the Sorokdo 4·6 Incident," and added, "It holds significant value as an artifact containing the voices of Hansen’s disease patients who cried out for freedom and human rights."

Stethoscope at Noksan Medical Training Center, Sorokdo, Goheung

The artifacts of the Noksan Medical Training Center in Goheung Sorokdo show the reality of the Noksan Medical Training Center (1949?1961), which trained patients as medical personnel in Sorokdo, where there was a shortage of healthcare workers. The collection includes a stethoscope, anatomy books, and two certificates of completion. The stethoscope was given to the first graduating class. The Cultural Heritage Administration stated, "Medical personnel from the Noksan Medical Training Center were trusted as individuals who did not discriminate against or neglect Hansen’s disease patients," and explained, "It points to Sorokdo’s unique medical education system and self-reliance efforts, which are difficult to find anywhere else in the world."

Large Buddhist Banner Painting and Banner Box in Possession of Jingwansa Temple, Seoul

The preliminary cultural heritage designation also includes the 'Large Buddhist Painting and Painting Box held at Jingwansa Temple in Seoul.' This is a large Buddhist painting used in the Jingwansa Temple’s Surukjae ritual, which is a national intangible cultural heritage. It was created in 1935 by Ilseop (1900?1975) and others and enshrined at Samgaksa Temple in Samgaksan. Since the 1960s, it has been held at Jingwansa Temple in Seoul.

This painting is in the form of an Ojon-do (Five Venerables Painting), placing the principal Buddha in the center with attendant bodhisattvas on the left and right, and behind them, the Buddha’s disciples, Kassapa and Ananda. The faces, bodies, and folds of the robes of the statues use chiaroscuro techniques to express three-dimensionality and spatial depth. The Cultural Heritage Administration praised it as "a high-quality work that actively reflects new expression techniques of the modern period," and noted, "The authenticity is confirmed by records of the production year, creator, and donors."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.