Kim Daeyoung, Incheon City Council Member, "Incheon Democratization Movement Memorial Hall Should Be Built to Commemorate the May 3rd Uprising"

Kim Dae-young, a member of the Incheon City Council (Democratic Party, proportional representation), emphasized the necessity of establishing the Incheon Democratization Movement Memorial Hall during the 301st extraordinary session plenary meeting held on the 24th, urging Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok to actively promote the project.

Councilor Kim stated, "Incheon was a key hub of South Korea's democratization movement, including the May 3 Incheon Uprising in 1986, the June Uprising in 1987, and the labor movements that were actively carried out in Bupyeong, Juan, and Dongincheon. However, the fact that there has been no space to commemorate, research, and educate about the democratization movement until now is a neglect of our historical responsibility."

He explained, "Several cities have already systematically carried out democratization movement memorial projects reflecting their local history and characteristics, such as the Seoul Democracy and Human Rights Memorial Hall, the Gwangju 5.18 Democratization Movement Memorial Hall, and the Changwon Labor History Museum. However, Incheon, one of the symbolic cities of the democratization movement, has no related memorial facilities."

He particularly criticized that although feasibility studies and basic planning for the memorial hall were discussed during the 7th local government term, and the 8th local government transition committee also expressed intentions to promote the memorial hall, the city has only provided a generic response of "under review" without any significant progress since then.

Kim Dae-young, Incheon City Council member. Provided by Incheon City Council

Councilor Kim also presented specific opinions regarding the selection of the memorial hall site.

He argued, "Although candidate sites such as Dongincheon, Juan, and Bupyeong, which were centers of the democratic uprisings, have been mentioned, considering the historical significance of the May 3 Uprising, the site of the old Citizens' Hall (currently Citizens' Park) is the most symbolic location. It is appropriate to relocate the Tteum Cultural Creation Zone currently on the site to another location and build the memorial hall there."

He emphasized, "The memorial hall should not simply be an exhibition space showing the past but should be a future-oriented platform that educates, discusses, and inherits democracy."

Additionally, Councilor Kim pointed out that among the democratization movements, only the May 3 Incheon Uprising has not been designated as a national memorial day, stating, "Incheon City should take the lead in consulting with relevant ministries and collaborating with civil society to promote the establishment of a national memorial day."

He continued, "The establishment of the Incheon Democratization Movement Memorial Hall is a task to establish Incheon's identity and spirit and will be a valuable foundation for educating future generations about the value of democracy. This project is the responsibility of everyone regardless of political party and should be a promise by all of us to never forget the dedication of citizens who fought for freedom, justice, and democracy."

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