[Full Text] Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung's 76th Liberation Day Celebration Speech

A community preserved through the noble sacrifices of our ancestors,

Gyeonggi Province will continue with peace and fairness.

Dear residents of Gyeonggi Province,

Honored independence activists and their families,

Today marks the 76th Liberation Day.

Because of the noble sacrifices of our ancestors who bravely resisted the Japanese oppression with their lives,

we now enjoy peace and freedom on this land.

We sincerely express our respect and gratitude to the independence activists and their descendants.

Recently, through the media,

it was revealed that the proud independence activist of Gyeonggi Province, the late Lee Seok-yeong,

has direct descendants still living,

and the story of how his family was scattered and had to live in hardship came to light.

On December 30, 1910, when the Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty was enforced,

Lee Seok-yeong disposed of all his property and fled to China, where he and his brothers, known as the 'Udang Six Brothers' (Geon-yeong, Seok-yeong, Cheol-yeong, Hoe-yeong, Si-yeong, Ho-yeong), established Gyeonghaksa and the Shinheung Military Academy.

The Shinheung Military Academy founded by the brothers became a cradle of armed anti-Japanese resistance,

producing over 3,500 independence army commanders and soldiers, including Generals Kim Jwa-jin, Lee Cheong-cheon, and Lee Beom-seok.

However, like almost all independence activists and their descendants,

their lives, exchanged for the liberation of the homeland,

were filled with blood and thorns.

It is truly fortunate and heartening that the descendants of Lee Seok-yeong, who was thought to have died in a Shanghai slum and whose lineage was believed to have ended,

can now find their roots.

The independence activists are the roots and pride of the Republic of Korea.

Gyeonggi Province will fully honor the philosophy of the 7th elected provincial government, "special compensation for special sacrifices,"

and will provide all possible respect and support as a local government to the patriotic independence activists and their descendants.

Furthermore, we will eradicate the remaining pro-Japanese culture and deep-rooted evils in our society,

and uphold the national spirit that the independence activists sought to protect.

□ The great people of Gyeonggi Province are the main actors of Korea’s independence

Not only Lee Seok-yeong and his brothers,

but Gyeonggi Province is also the birthplace of numerous anti-Japanese independence struggles.

Historical records prove that the largest number of units and personnel in Korea’s independence movement, including the March 1st Movement and subsequent struggles, originated in the Gyeonggi region.

During the March 1st Movement, a representative armed uprising that set fire to the Japanese police station oppressing Koreans and punished the oppressive police officers occurred in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province.

It was a truly historic uprising involving most of the 2,400 households in the Ujeong and Jangan areas.

The great patriotism and noble sacrifices of the people of Gyeonggi Province, who were powerless and weak but never turned a blind eye to injustice,

led to Korea’s independence.

The spirit of community, uniting in the face of national crisis and putting others before oneself,

continues to this day.

Even amid the COVID-19 crisis, which has caused over 190 million confirmed cases worldwide and more than 4 million deaths,

and enormous social and economic damage,

the people of Gyeonggi Province have shown a solidarity unseen anywhere else in the world,

supporting and empowering each other.

We extend our deep respect and gratitude to the 13.8 million residents of Gyeonggi Province.

□ Japan’s reflection on its past will enhance international trust and national dignity

Nothing is more shameful than a lack of remorse.

In October 2018, our Supreme Court issued a historic ruling declaring Japan’s colonial rule illegal, based on international human rights law and universal human values.

Twenty-five years earlier, in August 1993,

Japan’s then Chief Cabinet Secretary Kono acknowledged after over two years of investigation that the Japanese military was involved in the recruitment and management of comfort women and exercised coercive force over the victims.

Nevertheless, Japanese right-wing figures, including former Prime Minister Abe, have distorted and denied history, causing regression in Korea-Japan relations.

The 'Kono Statement' made 28 years ago, which said, "We do not avoid the facts of history but rather want to face them as lessons,"

has now come under suspicion even for its sincerity.

No country that committed colonial rule and war crimes can be welcomed in the international community without proper reckoning and reflection.

Repentance for past wrongs is a courageous act that establishes truth, justice, and history correctly,

and is the path to gaining international trust and enhancing national dignity.

Legal responsibility for forced labor and the Japanese military 'comfort women' victims, efforts to prevent recurrence, and sincere apologies

are essential attitudes for Japan to regain trust and moral recognition amid complex international relations.

The Japanese government must promptly acknowledge its shameful wrongdoings,

offer sincere apologies and forgiveness,

and embark on the path of historical progress and reconciliation.

Gyeonggi Province will raise its voice in step with the government

so that more citizens and the world can share the values of historical justice and universal human values.

□ Gyeonggi Province will open a world of peace and fairness

The Republic of Korea, which our ancestors protected through their noble sacrifices,

should be a peaceful country and a community fair to all its members.

It has been 76 years since Korea regained its sovereignty,

yet the reality of our country today is one of division and hostility between North and South,

and many young people struggle with unfairness and inequality.

In the uncertainty of the North-South standoff,

the wisest way to protect the safe lives of 13.8 million residents is to realize peace.

Gyeonggi Province has worked to overcome the hostile reality of division and uphold the value of peace through efforts such as preventing the distribution of leaflets to North Korea and inter-Korean peace cooperation projects.

The excellent peace roadmap agreed upon by North and South must also be actively utilized.

If the April 27 Panmunjom Declaration and the September 19 Pyongyang Declaration are properly implemented,

peace will firmly take root on the Korean Peninsula,

and Korea will become a strong country free from external interference.

Gyeonggi Province will stand at the starting point to ensure that no community or member suffers unjust sacrifice from foreign invasion again.

The value of a fair community for everyone

is the fundamental driving force that sustains the community and overcomes hardships and crises.

We will build a Gyeonggi Province where opportunities are equal for all, fair competition is guaranteed,

and just rewards are given according to contribution.

We will create a community where we live together.

Looking back at our history,

systems where the strong oppress the weak and unfairness is extreme collapse,

while eras with fair systems prosper.

We will advance toward a great harmonious society where the desires of the strong based on privilege and unfairness are restrained,

and politics that protect the weak’s lives prevail.

Dear residents,

Korea is moving toward the future.

Standing shoulder to shoulder with world powers,

it is firmly becoming a small but strong country that confidently exercises national sovereignty and independent diplomacy.

In the Republic of Korea, protected by the sacred sacrifices of our ancestors,

Gyeonggi Province will continue to do its utmost so that all members can live enjoying the values of peace and fairness.

Together with all public officials of Gyeonggi Province, I will fulfill all responsibilities so that residents can feel pride.

To all quarantine officials who steadfastly maintain their positions amid the national disaster-level COVID-19 crisis,

and to everyone who trusts the community and overcomes difficulties together,

I express my repeated gratitude.

On the 77th Liberation Day next year,

we will strive even more so that we can encourage each other, having wisely overcome COVID-19,

and share the joy of liberation and the spirit of community.

Thank you.

August 15, 2021

Governor of Gyeonggi Province Lee Jae-myung