What We Fought for Was Right
By Kim Se-jeong
Staff Reporter
The Canadian minister of veterans affairs commanded a return trip of Canadian Korean War veterans to Korea, whose remarkable transformation came to them as great reward.
The minister, Greg Thompson, said in an interview with The Korea Times last Friday, ``They are so proud. What we fought for and what we died for was right. Sacrifices that we made as a country were not in vain. They made differences in lives of millions of Koreans and in the future of this country.''
Forty-three veterans together with nearly 80 supporting staffers and lawmakers flew to Korea to commemorate the 55th anniversary of the armistice.
The trip, financed solely by the Canadian ministry, was a way to pay respect to men and women in uniform who fought for peace, the minister said. ``The biggest gift that we can give to our veterans is remembrance. And that's what we are here for this week.''
The Canadians participated in memorial ceremonies at the National Cemetery in Seoul, the Korean War Memorial to the Armed Forces of the British Commonwealth in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province, the Canadian Korean War Memorial Garden in Naechon, Gyeonggi Province, and the United Nations Memorial Cemetery in Busan.
During the war (1950-53), more than 30,000 Canadians fought North Korea as part of the United Nations forces. Of them, 516 lost their lives.
During the visit, the minister also met with Kim Yang, minister of patriots and veterans affairs to discuss ways to better serve veterans of both countries.
Canada has made a major upheaval in veterans affairs in recent years, updating old legislation to accommodate the needs of 4,000-5,000 new veterans that are coming into the system each year, the minister said.
``Their needs are quite different from the traditional veterans,'' who are mostly in the last stage of their lives. The average age of new veterans in Canada is 34, and ``they have 30 years of productive life ahead of them.''
Canada deployed troops in various missions throughout the world, including Afghanistan.
The first-time visitor himself, Thompson said he was deeply moved by Korean people. ``You are very hospitable. Your services and attention to details are absolutely great.''
The group left for Canada Tuesday.