Records of Korea's Modern Pain and Recovery
"Promoting Human Rights and Environmental Values to the World"
On the morning of the 3rd, the 77th anniversary of the Jeju 4·3 Victims Memorial Day, bereaved families visited the missing persons' memorial stone within the Jeju 4·3 Peace Park in Bonggae-dong, Jeju City, to honor the spirits of the victims. Photo by Yonhap News
Two records documenting the painful history of the Jeju April 3 Incident and the postwar Green Revolution in Korea have been inscribed on the UNESCO Memory of the World Register. With this addition, Korea now has 20 items listed as UNESCO documentary heritage.
The Cultural Heritage Administration and Jeju Special Self-Governing Province announced on the 11th that the UNESCO Executive Board, at a meeting held the previous day (local time) in Paris, France, inscribed the "Jeju April 3 Incident Archives" and the "Forest Rehabilitation Archives" on the Memory of the World Register.
The Jeju April 3 Incident Archives document the armed conflict and state violence that occurred between 1947 and 1954, as well as the efforts of local communities and civil society to overcome these events. The collection includes a total of 14,673 items such as lists of military court prisoners, letters from prison, victim testimonies, materials from truth-finding movements, and official government reports.
UNESCO evaluated these records as having universal value, describing them as "an example of democratic practice that reveals the truth of state violence and leads to social reconciliation."
On the morning of the 3rd, the 77th anniversary of the Jeju 4·3 Victims Memorial Day, bereaved families visited the missing persons' memorial stone at Jeju 4·3 Peace Park in Bonggae-dong, Jeju City, to honor the spirits of the victims. Photo by Yonhap News
The Forest Rehabilitation Archives, which were inscribed together, document the achievements of joint public-private reforestation projects carried out to restore the land devastated by the Korean War. The collection includes over 9,600 items such as forestry regulations, tree-planting posters, official documents, stamps, and promotional photographs.
The Cultural Heritage Administration stated, "The forest rehabilitation records serve as a policy model for developing countries and a global example in the era of climate crisis."
Oh Younghun, Governor of Jeju Province, said, "The spirit of reconciliation and coexistence created by the people of Jeju has become a global heritage," adding, "The April 3 Incident Archives will continue to serve as living materials for peace and human rights education."
With this inscription, Jeju Province has become a 'five-time UNESCO laureate' among local governments, following its designation as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve (2002), World Natural Heritage site (2007), Global Geopark (2010), and Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (2009).
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