Reports about independence movement go on display

Three historical documents, which show that the March 1, 1919 Independence Movement against the Japanese colonial rulers was not ignored internationally, were unveiled to the public on Thursday at the Independence Hall of Korea.

The disclosed items are Harry Whiting’s letter of appeal to Americans about the tragedy in Korea; an American Christian group’s report; and a magazine article about the Japanese colonial ruler’s deadly crackdown on the movement that left more than 7,000 Koreans dead. 

The petition by Whiting, an American missionary who was in Korea from 1903 to 1920, was intended to move the hearts of American Christians. He reportedly held a total of 266 lectures until 1921 and is believed to have used the letter when he lectured.

The article, “More Light From Korea,” written by an anonymous American and published in the May 31, 1919 edition of The Literary Digest, describes the atrocities of the Japanese rulers.

An affiliate of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S., was said to have been unaware of the Japanese colonization of Korea, but more and more news about its harsh rule finally drove them to write a detailed report, which resulted in the publication of “The Korean Situation.”

“‘The Korean Situation’ and the magazine articles have been widely known but this is the first time that the original book was opened to the public,” said Kim Seung-man, an official at the Independence Hall.

“These books show that the U.S. has been keen on the Korean independence movement,” said Kim Neung-jin, director of the museum at a press conference held on Thursday.

By Bae Ji-sook (baejisook@heraldcorp.com)