97-Year-Old Patriot Wearing Taegeukgi Outfit Attends Memorial Day Ceremony at Yeongcheon National Cemetery

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Dong-wook] Bae Seon-du (97), the only surviving patriot from the Liberation Army residing in the Gyeongbuk region, attracted attention by attending the '65th Memorial Day Ceremony' held on the 6th at the National Yeongcheon National Cemetery wearing clothes decorated with the Taegeukgi pattern.

Bae, who lives in Uiseong County, traveled over an hour to the venue that day and watched the memorial ceremony followed by the musical 'Hero' and the tribute performance of the song "Jangbuga" under the reception of Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province, and others.

Bae was forcibly conscripted by the Japanese army at the age of twenty in 1943, during the height of the Second Sino-Japanese War, deployed to the battlefield in Nanjing, China, escaped at the risk of his life, and then joined the Liberation Army. Afterwards, he was assigned to the Security Unit of the Liberation Army General Headquarters and served as a bodyguard for Baekbeom Kim Gu until just before liberation in 1945, returning to Korea the following year with General Lee Beom-seok. In 1990, Bae was awarded the Order of Merit for National Foundation, Patriotic Service Medal.

The Memorial Day ceremony at Yeongcheon National Cemetery was attended by about 300 people, including Governor Lee Cheol-woo, Lieutenant General Hwang In-kwon, Commander of the 2nd Army Operations Command, Jang Kyung-sik, Chairman of the Gyeongbuk Provincial Council, Lim Jong-sik, Superintendent of Gyeongbuk Provincial Office of Education, Park Geon-chan, Chief of Gyeongbuk Police Agency, heads of institutions and organizations, families of national merit recipients, veterans, and military personnel.