"Koreya Ura!" The Shouts of 1919 Echo Again in Goryeoin Village, Gwangju

Commemorating the 107th Anniversary of the March 1st Movement and the 103rd Anniversary of the Goryeoin Independence Movement
Taegeukgi Parade and Three Cheers of “Manse”... Over 300 Residents and Koryoin Compatriots Gather

On the afternoon of the 1st, commemorating the 107th anniversary of the March 1st Movement and the 103rd anniversary of the Goryeoin Independence Movement, participants raised Taegeukgi flags and shouted "Manse" in Goryeoin Village, Wolgok-dong, Gwangsan District, Gwangju. Photo by Bohyun Song

"Koreya Ura (Корея Ура, Long Live Korean Independence)!"

On the afternoon of March 1, at Damoa Children’s Park in Goryeoin Village, Wolgok-dong, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, residents and Koryoin compatriots gathered in the park, raising the Taegeukgi flag and shouting for independence. Under the early spring sunlight, the midday temperature in Gwangju reached around 14 degrees Celsius. In this warm weather, the shouts of 1919 once again echoed through this village, home to the Goryeoin community. On one side of the playground, children were playing on slides and swings, unaware of the event taking place.

On this day, an event titled "Lost Homeland, the Shout of That Day" was held to commemorate the 107th anniversary of the March 1st Movement and the 103rd anniversary of the Goryeoin Independence Movement. About 300 people, including Koryoin compatriots and residents of Wolgok-dong, attended the event.

On the afternoon of the 1st, at Damoa Children's Park in the Korean Village, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, the Korean Village Children's Choir performed at the March 1st Independence Movement Day commemoration event. Photo by Bohyun Song

The event began with a reenactment parade of the March 1st Independence Movement. Participants, dressed in attire replicating the traditional clothing and police uniforms of the time, walked through the village holding Taegeukgi flags. The parade passed the Goryeoin Cultural Center and the Goryeoin Comprehensive Support Center, ending at Damoa Children’s Park. Residents standing along the roadside waved Taegeukgi flags as they watched the procession.

The commemorative ceremony continued on the park stage. The Declaration of Independence was read aloud, and performances were given by the Goryeoin Village Children's Choir and the Arirang Dance Troupe. Attendees stood with Taegeukgi flags, sang the March 1st Movement song together, and then shouted three cheers of “Manse.”

A resident who attended the event said, "Holding the Taegeukgi and shouting with my children made me reflect on the meaning of the March 1st Movement. Having such an event held in Goryeoin Village makes it feel even more significant."

Shin Joya, head of Goryeoin Village, stated, "After the March 1st Independence Movement, our Goryeoin ancestors supported independence fighters who had gathered in Primorsky Krai by providing food, funds, and manpower, strengthening the anti-Japanese movement. This is a time to remember their tears and sorrow and to ask ourselves what we, who now stand on their sacrifices, must carry forward."

On the afternoon of the 1st, at Damoa Children's Park in the Goryeoin Village, Gwangsan District, Gwangju, residents and ethnic Korean compatriots from Central Asia waved the Taegeukgi flag and shouted three cheers of "Manse" at the March 1st Independence Movement Day commemoration event. Photo by Bohyun Song

Goryeoin Village is a community formed by the descendants of Koryoin who were forcibly relocated to Central Asia by Stalin in 1937 and have since returned to their homeland. Currently, it operates more than 40 institutions, including the Goryeoin Cultural Center, Moon Viktor Art Museum, a clinic, a comprehensive support center, a specialized street, Hong Beomdo Park, a children's choir, and an orchestra, continuing to provide settlement support and cultural activities.

Meanwhile, a ceremony was also held to commemorate the reopening of the Moon Viktor Art Museum at the event venue. About 50 major works by Moon Viktor, a third-generation Koryoin artist, were unveiled.