Symposium on Promoting the 'Haksaeng Doknip Undong' Student Independence Movement as National Heritage

Gwangju City and Korean Studies Honam Promotion Institute to Uncover Academic and Cultural Value of Student Movement Origins at 5·18 Archive on the 7th

Student Independence Movement Symposium Poster. [Image provided by Gwangju City]

Gwangju City announced on the 6th that, together with the Korea Studies Honam Promotion Institute, it will hold a symposium titled "Discovering the Cultural Heritage Value of the Gwangju Student Independence Movement" at 2 p.m. on the 7th at the May 18th Democratic Movement Memorial Hall to promote national designation of heritage.

At the symposium, presentations will cover the historical significance and value of the student independence movement (Park Chan-seung, Professor at Hanyang University), historical sites and preservation of the Gwangju Student Independence Movement (Shin Woong-joo, Professor at Chosun University), historical sites and preservation of the Naju Student Independence Movement (Kim Jong-soon, former Director of Culture and Arts at Naju City), overseas evaluation and international solidarity of the student independence movement (Jang Woo-kwon, Professor at Chonnam National University), and plans for upgrading the student independence movement to nationally designated heritage (Noh Sung-tae, Director of Namdo History Research Institute). Following the presentations, a comprehensive discussion will be held chaired by Han Kyu-moo, Professor at Gwangju University.

The student independence movement was an anti-Japanese movement led by students from Gwangju High School (now Gwangju Jeil High School), Gwangju Public Girls' High School (now Jeonnam Girls' High School), Gwangju Normal School (now Gwangju National University of Education), and Gwangju Agricultural School (now Gwangju Natural Science High School) at Naju Station and Gwangju Station on November 3, 1929. The independence movement spread not only throughout Korea but also to China and the Americas.

Gwangju City and Jeonnam Province plan to promote the upgrade of student independence movement sites such as the Gwangju High School teacher's site and Naju Station to nationally designated heritage by 2029, the 100th anniversary of the student independence movement.

In 1999, the city designated and manages the Gwangju High School teacher's site (Gwangju Jeil High School) and Gwangju Girls' High School teacher's site (Jeonnam Girls' High School), which are relatively well-preserved among the schools attended by students who led the Gwangju Student Independence Movement, as city-designated cultural heritage monuments called "Birthplace of the Gwangju Student Independence Movement." Jeonnam Province designated Naju Station as a provincial cultural heritage monument called "Origin of the Gwangju Student Independence Movement, Naju Station" in 2000 and manages it.

The student independence movement was designated as "Student Day" in 1953, abolished in 1973, and re-designated as a national memorial day in 1984. In 2006, "Student Day" was changed to "Student Independence Movement Memorial Day," and since 2018, it has been elevated to a government commemorative ceremony.

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