Veterans ministry to launch public campaign marking 80th anniv. of Korea's liberation

Lee Hee-wan, vice minister of patriots and veterans affairs, speaks in a policy briefing at the government complex in the central city of Sejong, Nov. 18. Yonhap

The veterans ministry said Monday it will host a major campaign honoring independence fighters next year to mark the 80th anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule.

"The ministry plans to push for a nationwide campaign so that the public can remember and pay gratitude to the sacrifice and devotion of independence fighters, and so that such noble value could be wholly passed on to future generations," Vice Veterans Minister Lee Hee-wan said in a policy briefing.

In the briefing held to review key feats of the Yoon Suk Yeol administration in the area of veterans affairs, Lee said the ministry will push to introduce a fair and swift compensation system for veterans.

The ministry plans to raise compensation fees to the highest level for war veterans and build new national cemeteries for fallen veterans, he added.

Formerly a government agency, the veterans ministry was officially launched as a ministry in June 2023, in a show of Seoul's renewed commitment to commemorating and honoring those who sacrificed themselves for the nation. (Yonhap)