Moon attends Jeju Massacre anniversary
By Choi Ha-young
President Moon Jae-in will attend an annual ceremony, Tuesday, for massacres committed by state forces on Jeju Island between 1948 and 1954 amid the escalating ideological conflict following the nation's liberation from the 1910-1945 Japanese colonial rule.
DPK Chairwoman Rep. Choo Mi-ae said Moon will visit Jeju Island Tuesday to console the surviving victims.
“Seventy years ago, bloody tears of Jeju residents were spilled on the island. However, none of those on the mainland knew of the slaughters until 1998 when a public hearing was held in Seoul,” Choo, wearing a camellia badge that symbolizes the incident, said at a party meeting.
The massacre, also known as the April 3 Incident or the April 3 Uprising and Massacre, refers to killings committed by forces under the U.S. military government of Korea and later South Korean President Syngman Rhee. About 25,000 to 30,000 islanders were killed over a boycott of the U.S. -backed general election that solidified the division of Korea.
