(The CEN News / Reporter Ahn Chae-bin) The Jeonju March 13 independence demonstration was reenacted in downtown Jeonju for the first time in 107 years.
On the 14th, the Jeonju chapter of the Liberation Association staged the March 13 reenactment around Jeonju Sinhung High School and Pungnammun Square. Organizers said the event honored the spirit of the independence activists and commemorated the historical significance of the Jeonju March 13 movement, the largest independence protest in North Jeolla Province.
The March 13 demonstration, led by Pastor Kim In-jeon of Seomun Church and students from Sinhung and Gijeon schools, was a large-scale independence protest 107 years ago. Contemporary accounts estimate that about 10,000 people participated.
About 400 people—students, members of the Liberation Association and local residents—took part in the reenactment. Carrying a large Taegeukgi flag, they marched from Sinhung High School past Gaksa and the Gwantong intersection to Pungnammun Square, recreating the fervor of the original demonstration.
At Pungnammun Square, the second portion of the program continued. Jeonju Mayor Woo Beom-gi delivered a commemorative address. Descendants of independence activists and a student representative read the Declaration of Independence. Side events, including a 3.1 Manse musical gala performed by a creative theater troupe, conveyed themes of patriotism to residents and visitors.
In the final segment, kindergarteners sang the March 1st song and led three shouts of “manse” (meaning “long live”) to close the event.
Lee Gyo-geon, head of the Jeonju chapter of the Liberation Association, said, “I hope the reenactment helped young people develop a firm sense of history and identity, and that it served as a festival to instill national pride among citizens.”
Photo: Yonhap News
(The CEN News) Reporter Ahn Chae-bin press@mhns.co.kr
