Politics · South Korea · 50 mins ago
South Korea to honor 206 people for independence activities
South Korea will honor 206 people for resisting Japanese rule ahead of Patriots’ and Veterans’ Day on November 17.
Among them is Kim Seok-young, a Korean laborer in Japan who formed a secret group in Tokyo in 1940 and planned attacks on the Imperial Palace and government offices.
The plan was discovered, and Kim was arrested; he died in prison in 1944.
The honorees also include Park Seong-nyeo, who distributed anti-colonial leaflets, and doctor Kim Hui-yeong, who joined a 1919 protest with miners.
The awards comprise 46 Orders of Merit, four medals and 156 presidential citations.
November 17 commemorates patriots who died for independence, around the time Japan took control of Korea’s foreign affairs in 1905.
The government says it will keep identifying independence activists for recognition.
South Korea will award honors to 206 people for activities in support of independence during Japanese colonial rule.
The awards are being announced for the 87th Patriots’ and Veterans’ Day, observed on November 17.
The recipients include Kim Seok-young, who tried to bomb Japan’s Imperial Palace and other major institutions.
The awards comprise 46 Orders of Merit for National Foundation, four Medals of Merit for National Foundation and 156 presidential commendations.
The government said 19,265 people have received independence honors since the establishment of the South Korean government.
- Who
- South Korea’s Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs will honor 206 independence activists.
- What
- The government will award national honors for activities supporting Korean independence.
- When
- The announcement was made on November 15, 2026; the awards mark Patriots’ and Veterans’ Day on November 17.
- Where
- South Korea; the article does not state where the awards will be presented.
- Why
- The honors recognize people who worked for Korean independence during Japanese colonial rule and commemorate those who died for the cause.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Kim Seok-young formed a secret group in Tokyo and planned attacks on Japan’s Imperial Palace and major institutions.
Kim died in prison while being held at Tokyo Detention House.
The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs announced that 206 people would receive honors.
South Korea marks the 87th Patriots’ and Veterans’ Day.
- Total recipients
- 206
- Orders of Merit for National Foundation
- 46: 10 Orders of Merit and 36 Medals of Honor
- Medals of Merit for National Foundation
- 4
- Presidential commendations
- 156
- Total honored since government establishment
- 19,265
- Kim Seok-young’s award
- Order of Merit for National Foundation, Patriotic Medal
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What people are saying
We will continue to work harder to discover and honor even one more independence activist so that the noble spirit of sacrifice of those who devoted themselves solely to the independence of the homeland can be remembered and spread among all citizens, including future generations.