Seoul City Identifies 230 Independence Activists, Submits Award Nominations to Veterans Ministry

230 Independence Activists from Seoul Newly Identified
Award Nominations Submitted to the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs
Includes Kim Kyungseok, Who Set Fire to Lee Wanyong’s House

A total of 230 independence activists from Seoul have been newly identified. Seoul City announced on August 28 that, as part of a commemorative project for the 80th anniversary of Liberation, it has submitted award nomination forms to the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs.

This project began with the Independence Movement History Research Institute at Incheon National University conducting research from May, interpreting key documents created during the Japanese invasion and occupation periods to identify independence activists from Seoul. Out of approximately 70,000 historical records, the researchers examined 8,000 documents related to Seoul-born independence activists, as well as records from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and documents from the Prosecutor’s Office of the Gyeongseong District Court.

Commemorative photo of the briefing session for the nomination of independence activists from Seoul. Seoul City

The scope of the project, based on the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs’ award regulations, covers independence activists active between 1895 and 1945. The administrative districts considered were Hanseongbu (1895-1910), Gyeongseongbu (1910-1946), and Seoul City (1946-1951).

Among the 230 newly identified independence activists are Park Hyunhwan, from Changsin-dong in Gyeongseongbu and a teacher at Osan School in Jeongju, Pyeongbuk, as well as Kim Kyungseok and Choi Byungseon, who organized a secret society and set fire to the house of pro-Japanese collaborator Lee Wanyong.

Park Hyunhwan informed Osan School founder Lee Seunghun in February 1919 about a secret meeting of religious leaders in Seoul. In June 1919, he served as a member of the Historical Compilation Committee of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea and as a reporter for the Provisional Government’s official newspaper, "Independence." He also established the Suyangdongwoohoe, a sister organization to Ahn Changho’s Heungsadan, and was imprisoned for over four years for his activities.

Kim Kyungseok and Choi Byungseon, together with Yoon Ibyung and Lee Geunwoo, formed the secret society "Dongwoohoe" in June 1907. Both were arrested on charges of setting fire to Lee Wanyong’s house and, in December of that year, were sentenced to 10 years of exile for treason by the Pyeongriwon court, enduring severe hardships.

The city held a briefing session on the nomination of independence activists from Seoul at City Hall the previous afternoon. At the event, Seoul Mayor’s award nomination forms, with supporting documents attached, were delivered to Jeon Jongho, head of the Seoul Regional Office of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, who attended on behalf of the Minister. The Ministry will review the nomination forms and finalize the awarding of independence activist honors.

Yoon Jongjang, Director of Welfare at Seoul City, stated, "To mark the 80th anniversary of Liberation, we have launched a project to identify independence activists from Seoul who contributed to the independence movement but have not received proper recognition." He added, "Our goal is to continue the project through next year and discover a total of 500 independence activists."

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