North Korea: "March 1st Movement Was a Patriotic Struggle for National Sovereignty... Japanese Imperialism's Brutal Suppression"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] On the 102nd anniversary of the March 1st Movement, North Korea stated that the March 1st Movement was a patriotic struggle for national sovereignty, condemned Japan's oppression, and demanded apology and compensation.

The Workers' Party of Korea's official newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, in an interview-style article with Wi Gwang-nam, director of the History Research Institute at the Social Sciences Academy, on the 1st, said, "The March 1st People's Uprising was a patriotic struggle to regain the country's and nation's sovereignty stolen by Japanese imperialism."

Rodong Sinmun described the March 1st People's Uprising as "a nationwide anti-Japanese struggle that left a clear mark in our country's national liberation history," quoting Chairman Kim Il-sung's instruction that "the Japanese invaders implemented an unprecedentedly brutal and ruthless governor-generalship in Joseon, ruling our people by barbaric methods."

It added, "Even as time passes and generations change, our people will never forget the Japanese imperialists' eternal crimes of brutally massacring patriots and revolutionaries who rose up for the country's independence and national liberation, enslaving and killing countless young and middle-aged people throughout the colonial rule period, and will thoroughly reckon with them."

In the interview with Director Wi, he said, "The March 1st People's Uprising was an explosion of the accumulated resentment and hatred of the Korean nation, who suffered severe humiliation and abuse under the Japanese imperialists' barbaric military rule, and a just struggle of our people for national independence," and condemned, "The March 1st People's Uprising was a peaceful protest, but the Japanese imperialists mobilized fully armed invading forces."

He also pointed out that Japan organized a 'Special Arrest Unit' to suppress the people. Director Wi emphasized, "The Japanese imperialists created what they called the Special Arrest Unit, which not only operated at protest sites but also raided villages in areas where protests occurred, carrying out arrests, imprisonments, and brutal massacres of patriotic people."