[Exclusive] 'Lee Hoe-yeong Seonsaeng Bust' Will Not Be Relocated... Ministry of National Defense Reaches Tentative Conclusion

Excluding Lee Hoe-yeong, Founder of Sinheung Military Academy, from the Review of 5 Busts
Relocation to Another On-Campus Site and Promotion of Monument Renovation Project

As the Ministry of National Defense pushes to relocate the busts of five independence and liberation army heroes installed at the Korea Military Academy, controversy has arisen, and it has been tentatively decided not to move the bust of Lee Hoe-young, the founder of the Shinhung Military Academy.

A military official said in a phone interview with Asia Economy on the 28th, “The bust of Lee Hoe-young, who founded the Shinhung Military Academy, the predecessor of the Korea Military Academy, will not be moved to the Independence Hall but is being considered to be relocated to another place within the campus,” adding, “The relocation could take place as early as next week.”

The busts of Independence Army Generals Kim Jwa-jin, Hong Beom-do, Ji Cheong-cheon, Lee Beom-seok, and Lee Hoe-young were made by melting rifle shells used by soldiers during the 99th anniversary of the March 1st Movement in March 2018, under the Moon Jae-in administration. Since then, as part of a comprehensive development plan initiated in the first year of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration last year, the relocation of the statues has been pursued.

General Hong Beom-do has faced continuous controversy since the previous government installed his statue on the Korea Military Academy campus, due to his history of joining the Soviet Communist Party. The Ministry of National Defense also actively pushed for the relocation, citing the fact that General Hong, who led the victory in the Battle of Bongo-dong, joined the Soviet Communist Party in 1927 as a problem. Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop clearly stated that the background of the decision to remove the bust was due to General Hong’s Communist Party membership, saying, “There were issues raised regarding his communist background.”

If General Hong’s statue is removed, it will be just over five years since the bust was installed in March 2018, and only two years since his remains, which had been in Kazakhstan, returned to the homeland in 2021 under the escort of the Air Force after 78 years.

The military judges that there is no need to relocate the bust of Lee Hoe-young, as he founded the Shinhung Military Academy, the predecessor of the Korea Military Academy. In 1907, Lee established the anti-Japanese secret organization Shinminhoe and founded the military academy called Shinhung Gangseungso. The name was later changed to Shinhung Military Academy, which is now the Korea Military Academy.

However, if only the busts of Independence Army Generals Kim Jwa-jin, Hong Beom-do, Ji Cheong-cheon, and Lee Beom-seok are moved to the Independence Hall, there could be room for controversy. Past governments have recognized General Hong Beom-do’s achievements. The Park Geun-hye administration even named the Navy’s latest 1,800-ton submarine the “Hong Beom-do” in 2016.

Representatives from the Hong Beom-do General, Udang Lee Hoe-young, Shinhung Military Academy, and Baekya Kim Jwa-jin General Memorial Associations held a press conference at the National Assembly on the 26th, criticizing the move as “a very serious and grave issue attempting to overturn the history of the independence war, the origin of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.” The conference was attended by Lee Jong-chan, chairman of the Liberation Association and grandson of Lee Hoe-young, and Kim Eul-dong, former National Assembly member and granddaughter of General Kim Jwa-jin.

Some speculate that the Presidential Office has shifted its stance on the bust relocation issue within the Korea Military Academy, stating that it is a matter for the Ministry of National Defense and the Academy to decide, which could lead the Ministry to fully reconsider the relocation. A key official from the Presidential Office said on the 27th in response to inquiries about the issue, “The Ministry of National Defense and the Korea Military Academy will carefully review and decide,” refraining from further comments. While expressing respect for the military authorities’ decision, by deferring the matter to the “Ministry of National Defense and the Korea Military Academy,” the Ministry inevitably feels the burden.

A military official said, “If the busts are relocated, we are focusing on creating an optimal environment where the values and significance of defending liberal democracy and the Korea-US alliance can be felt, and are promoting a monument reorganization project.”