Lee Wanyong's Great-Grandson Reclaims About 700 Pyeong of Land in His Name Through Lawsuit,
Earns 3 Billion Won in Profits
The fact that the great-grandson of Lee Wanyong, one of the "Eulsa Five Traitors," sold redeveloped land in the Bukahyeon-dong area of Seodaemun-gu, Seoul and then emigrated to Canada has recently come to light, sparking public outrage. The land in question was once owned by Lee Wanyong, but was confiscated by the government as property "accumulated through pro-Japanese activities." However, the great-grandson filed a lawsuit against the state to reclaim the land, arguing that it was his ancestor's property, and won the case, regaining ownership.
According to Tangjipgo, a real estate news outlet, on April 27, Lee Wanyong's great-grandson sold 2,354 square meters (about 712 pyeong) of land at 545, 546, and 608 Bukahyeon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul in November 1997. After liquidating his assets, he left Korea and emigrated to Canada.
The Bukahyeon-dong land was originally confiscated by the government, but Lee reclaimed it through a lawsuit. At the time, the court of first instance ruled, "It is unacceptable in a law-governed country to deprive someone of property rights without legal grounds simply because the land belonged to a pro-Japanese collaborator. Since there was no legal basis for confiscating the land, it must be returned." The appellate court upheld the original verdict, and the Supreme Court also dismissed the defendant's appeal, stating, "There was no misapplication of law or error in fact-finding in the previous rulings."
It was confirmed that Lee sold the reclaimed land, which had belonged to his great-grandfather, for 4 million to 4.5 million won per 3.3 square meters. The total sale price amounted to 3 billion won. Since 2008, this land has been included in the Bukahyeon District 2 redevelopment project. In the future, the area is expected to be transformed into an apartment complex consisting of 28 buildings, 2,320 units, with three basement levels and 29 above-ground floors through redevelopment.
According to the report of the Investigation Commission on Pro-Japanese Collaborators’ Property, Lee Wanyong owned 1,801 parcels of land totaling 22,334,954 square meters (6,768,168 pyeong) nationwide during the Japanese colonial period. This is equivalent to 5.4 times the size of Yeouido in Seoul. However, the commission was able to recover only 10,928 square meters, which is just 0.05% of the total real estate Lee had owned. This was because Lee had liquidated most of his land holdings before Korea’s liberation. Even some of the recovered land was later returned to his descendants through lawsuits.
Lee Wanyong is known as the main figure behind the 1905 Eulsa Treaty and the 1910 Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty, and is often called "the worst traitor who sold out the country to Japan." After the Hague Secret Emissary Affair in 1907, in which the illegality of the Eulsa Treaty was exposed and Korea's sovereignty was appealed to the world powers, Lee forced Emperor Gojong to abdicate and enthroned Sunjong. He then served as Prime Minister and signed the Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty with Japan. Lee Wanyong died of pneumonia on February 12, 1926, during the Japanese colonial period.
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