Completion by Year-End Including Complex Facility Development and Pilgrimage Course Connection
The Jeonghae Persecution Peace Pilgrimage Trail project in Gokseong-gun, Jeollanam-do is accelerating with the goal of completion in the second half of this year.
The Jeonghae Persecution Peace Pilgrimage Trail project commemorates the Catholic persecution incident centered in Gokseong in 1827 (the 27th year of King Sunjo's reign). A total budget of 12.1 billion KRW has been invested from 2020 to 2024, and the project has been underway for five years.
This project is expected to revitalize cultural tourism and contribute to the local economy by creating a complex facility near the site of the Jeonghae Persecution and connecting a pilgrimage course including Gokseong Cathedral.
Accordingly, the county signed a business agreement with the Catholic Archdiocese of Gwangju and is swiftly progressing with the construction of a two-story exhibition hall inside Gokseong Cathedral located at the Jeonghae Persecution prison site, as well as a multipurpose complex center around 336 Myocheon-ri, Gokseong-eup.
These buildings are scheduled to be completed by the end of this year.
In addition, Gokseong-gun is focusing its efforts on developing operational content such as discovering pilgrimage trail courses to establish a solid operation plan for the Jeonghae Persecution Peace Pilgrimage Trail project, aiming to develop it into a special historical and cultural pilgrimage trail that connects the past and present.
A Gokseong-gun official stated, “Although many pilgrims nationwide currently visit Gokseong Cathedral and the origin site, we will complete the Jeonghae Persecution Peace Pilgrimage Trail project without delay to attract more pilgrimage tourists, revitalize the local economy, and contribute to overcoming the crisis of regional extinction.”
Meanwhile, Kim Tak-hwan, a writer currently residing in Gokseong-gun, published a full-length novel titled “Love and Revolution 1·2·3” last September, which is set against the backdrop of the Jeonghae Persecution. He recently won the grand prize at the Korean Catholic Literature Awards.
Gokseong = Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Cha Jong-seon hss79@asiae.co.kr
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