ACRC Ensures the Devotion of Young Soldiers Who Fought in the Korean War is Not Forgotten

• ACRC expressed opinions that “there must be continuous verification of the existence of child soldiers, establishment of memorial and commemorative facilities, enshrinement of their tablets, and the provision of exhibition spaces” to the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Veterans Affairs

(10^th Dec. 2024, ACRC)

An opinion that efforts must continue to ensure that the devotion of child soldiers who participated in the Korean War at an age under 18 is not forgotten has been expressed.

The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC, Chairperson Ryu Chul Whan) expressed its opinion to government agencies, including the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Veterans Affairs, to take measures to honor and recognize these child soldiers in response to a civil petition for grievance raised by Lee Gyu-won, a head of a dental clinic who operates the ‘Incheon Memorial of Korean War Student Troops.’

ACRC previously advised the Minister of National Defense to investigate and confirm the existence of child soldiers based on the civil petition for grievance raised by the Association of the Korean War Child Soldiers in 2008, to accurately record their military service and deaths, and to request the Minister of Veterans Affairs to enshrine the tablets of deceased child soldiers and erect memorial facilities such as the Patriotic Martyrs’ Tower to honor their memories.

Dr. Lee Gyu-won, whose father was a child soldier during the Korean War, raised concerns that there has been insufficient attention and effort towards recognizing the sacrifices of these child soldiers, urging for the excavation, ation, and research of the child soldiers’ participation history, and for the establishment of a memorial and commemorative museum for child soldiers to ensure they are not forgotten.

ACRC received a list of 42 fallen child soldiers from the Incheon region, which Dr. Lee has collected and discovered for over nearly 30 years, along with supporting ation, and conducted fact-finding investigations with the relevant institutions.      

Although the participation and deaths of the 42 child soldiers whose s were submitted by Dr. Lee were confirmed through military records held by the Army and Navy, as well as information managed by the Ministry of Veterans Affairs, the National Cemetery, the Military History Institute, and the War Memorial, only 8 out of these were officially recorded regarding their participation as child soldiers.

Additionally, the Ministry of Veterans Affairs has been building memorials for veterans (national heroes) in local governments and schools each year since 2016, and as of 2023, a total of 58 memorials have been established in elementary, middle, and high schools. Among these, there are some memorials considering types of war participation such as ‘fallen student volunteer forces and student soldiers,’ but no memorial for child soldiers has been found.

Furthermore, ACRC pointed out the fact that of the 42 child soldiers submitted by Dr. Lee, 5 were either not enshrined at the National Cemetery or were registered under different names, and that a list of fallen child soldiers identified until that time was attached to the appendix of the book ‘Research on Child Soldiers in the Korean War’ published by the Military History Institute in 2011, but only 14 of these were listed, while the others were omitted. ACRC also noted that there is currently no exhibition space for fallen child soldiers at the War Memorial.

In response, ACRC expressed its opinion to the Minister of National Defense to continue the work of correcting military records through verification of the existence of all child soldiers, including the list submitted by Dr. Lee, and to the Minister of Veterans Affairs to actively establish memorial and commemorative facilities to honor the contributions and sacrifices of child soldiers by recording their participation.

The Commission also recommended that the Director of the National Seoul Cemetery actively promote the enshrinement of tablets for child soldiers who have not yet been registered and that the Director of the Military History Institute revise the list of child soldiers who lost their lives included in the book ‘Research on Child Soldiers in the Korean War’ and re-post it on their website while periodically updating it; and also requested the president of the War Memorial Association to establish exhibition space for child soldiers within the War Memorial.

Park Jong-min, the Vice-chairperson for Grievance Handling and Secretariat of the ACRC, stated, “It is the nation’s rightful duty to provide appropriate respect to the child soldiers who devoted themselves to the country at a young age without descendants. We will continue to work actively to ensure that measures for honoring and recognizing the child soldiers are properly implemented.”