Supreme Court Rules Cancellation of Honors for Inchon Kim Seong-su's "Pro-Japanese Activities" Justified

by Kwak Minjae

Published 12 Apr.2024 12:01(KST)

The Supreme Court has ruled that the cancellation of the commendation awarded to Inchon Kim Seong-su, who was recognized as an independence activist but later found to have some pro-Japanese activities during the Japanese colonial period, is justified.

Supreme Court. / Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

The Supreme Court's Third Division (Presiding Justice Noh Jeong-hee) on the 12th upheld the lower court's ruling that dismissed the appeal filed by Kim Jae-ho, president of the Dong-A Ilbo and great-grandson of Kim Seong-su, and the Inchon Memorial Foundation against the President regarding the cancellation of the commendation.

The court stated, "The deceased's pro-Japanese activities were facts newly revealed that were not known at the time the commendation was awarded. If these facts had been discovered during the commendation review, a comprehensive evaluation of the originally investigated merits and the newly revealed facts would objectively show that the deceased's actions cannot be recognized as merits for the commendation."

Inchon was awarded the Order of Merit for National Foundation (Presidential Medal) in 1962 in recognition of his contributions to founding the Dong-A Ilbo and Boseong Professional School, the predecessor of Korea University.

However, in 2009, the Committee for the Investigation of Pro-Japanese and Anti-National Acts determined that Inchon had engaged in pro-Japanese and anti-national activities. This was based on the fact that Inchon had contributed several articles praising conscription and student conscription to nationwide daily newspapers and attended a celebration event for the implementation of the Japanese conscription system.

In response, Kim Jae-ho and the Inchon Memorial Foundation filed a lawsuit in the following year against the Minister of the Interior and Safety, requesting the cancellation of the pro-Japanese and anti-national acts decision. However, a partial dismissal of the plaintiff's claims was finalized in 2017. The part regarding activities as a preparatory committee member of the Heung-a Patriotic Group was canceled due to lack of specific evidence, but the rest of the decision was upheld.

Based on the Supreme Court's final ruling in February 2018, the government decided to cancel the commendation previously awarded to Inchon. Kim Jae-ho and the Inchon Memorial Foundation argued that the acts cited as Inchon's pro-Japanese activities might have been distorted or fabricated, and considering Inchon's merits after liberation, the cancellation of the commendation was unjust. They filed an administrative lawsuit in May of the same year.

However, the first trial court, like the previous Supreme Court rulings, found that Inchon had engaged in pro-Japanese acts and dismissed all claims by Kim Jae-ho and the Inchon Memorial Foundation. They appealed the decision, but the appellate court's ruling was the same.