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Prime minister honors late independence fighter with return of remains to Korea

Published: 22 Apr. 2026, 17:57 Updated: 22 Apr. 2026, 18:13

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok delivers a commemorative speech at a repatriation ceremony for the remains of independence activist Lee Ha-jun at the Seoul National Cemetery in Dongjak District, southern Seoul, on April 21. [YONHAP]

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok on Wednesday reaffirmed Seoul's pledge to ensure that all independence fighters are laid to rest at home.

The renewed pledge came in a ceremony marking the repatriation of the remains of the late independence fighter Lee Ha-jun, who fought for liberation from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule.

The centenarian died at his home in California in February at the age of 104. His remains arrived in Korea on Tuesday and will be laid to rest alongside his wife at Daejeon National Cemetery.

"Even amidst the horrendous torture that he suffered daily, he endured the flogging while thinking only of the independence of his homeland," Kim said during the repatriation ceremony at Seoul National Cemetery, referring to the three and a half years Lee was imprisoned in Japan.

“Even after the independence of his homeland, he did not speak of his fight for independence or the pain he suffered as a result to anyone and endured the long years alone."

Born in Pyongyang in 1921, Lee was 17 years old when he organized a secret society to fight for Korea's independence.

Following liberation in 1945, he relocated to the United States, eventually becoming the oldest surviving independence fighter and the last activist living overseas.

Kim said in his speech that the remains of 156 independence patriots, including Lee, have been returned home under a government initiative that began in 1975.

“The government will do its best for the repatriation of remains until the day the last person is brought home," he said.

“We will remember and inherit until the end the passionate patriotic spirit and love of country that numerous patriotic fighters dedicated to the independence movement against Japan."

Yonhap