Commemoration Ceremony for An Jung-geun's Harbin Incident 113th Anniversary to be Held on the 26th

Held at An Jung-geun Memorial Hall... An Jung-geun Scholarship Also Awarded

Three days before the 74th Liberation Day, on the 12th, the statue of Independence Activist Ahn Jung-geun stands firmly in Namsan Park, Seoul. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The 113th anniversary ceremony of the assassination by Ahn Jung-geun will be held on the 26th at the Ahn Jung-geun Memorial Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul.

According to the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs on the 25th, the event will also include a ceremony to present the 'Ahn Jung-geun Scholarship' to three individuals and three groups. The Ahn Jung-geun Scholarship was established in 2003 to pass on Ahn's noble patriotism and peace ideology to future generations, and this year marks its 19th anniversary.

Ahn Jung-geun, a thinker and soldier who announced the nation's will for independence to the world through the Harbin assassination, was born in 1879 in Hwanghae Province. After the Eulsa Treaty in 1905, Ahn went to Shanghai, China, seeking ways to restore national sovereignty, then returned home and devoted his personal funds to establish Samheung School and Donui School to nurture talented individuals.

When the country fell into a colonial state with the abdication of Emperor Gojong and the disbandment of the army, he went abroad again and, together with Lee Beom-yoon and others, raised a militia. In 1908, as a militia commander, he led the militia forces into North Hamgyong Province and fought against Japan in areas such as Gyeongheung.

While traveling between places like Vladivostok in Russian territory, Ahn and his comrades cut their fingers in 1909 to form the 'Danji Alliance,' pledging 'Ilsa Boguk (一死報國, to repay the country with one’s life).'

Upon hearing that the chief aggressor Ito Hirobumi was visiting Harbin, Ahn shot Ito at around 9 a.m. on October 26 at Harbin Station, where Ito was moving under the salute of Russian troops and lined-up consuls from various countries, hitting all three shots. Facing the Russian soldiers rushing to arrest him, Ahn loudly shouted three times toward the sky, "Korea Ura (Long live Korean independence)." Ahn was captured by the Russian military police and transferred to a Japanese prison in L?shun, where he was interrogated and tried. Despite this, he criticized Japan's unjust aggression, demanded reform, advocated for complete independence of the homeland and the establishment of peace in East Asia, and was sentenced to death on February 14, 1910, dying a martyr on March 26.

The government honored Ahn’s achievements by posthumously awarding him the Order of Merit for National Foundation, Republic of Korea, in 1962.

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