President Yoon and First Lady attend the 104th anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement Day ceremony

President Yoon and First Lady Kim Keon-hee attended the 104th anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement Day ceremony held at the Yu Gwan Sun Memorial Hall. About 1,300 people including patriots, independence activists, bereaved families, key public officials, representatives from various fields, diplomatic corps in Korea, and citizens attended on the day. 

Yoon recalled the historical meaning of the March 1st Movement, diagnosed our current situation, and emphasized freedom, dedication, memory, future, and prosperity through his commemorative address. 

The commemorative ceremony was ‘Again, Korea! Under the theme of “New People’s Nation,” it contains the meaning of achieving national unity in the economy, society, and security and advancing together toward the future of a new leap forward, inheriting the spirit of the March 1st Movement and the noble sacrifice of the ancestors who stood up for independence.

Held under the theme of ‘Republic of Korea again, a nation of new people’, this event sent a message to inherit the spirit of the March 1st Movement and the noble sacrifice of the ancestors, achieve national unity in the economy, society and security and move forward together toward a new leap into the future.

A patriot Kim Young-kwan, and Jang Ye-jin (4th grade, Daegu Wangseon Elementary School), a descendant of an independence activist, entered with national flags alongside the presidential couple. The reading of the Declaration of Independence was joined by the musical <Hero> director Yoon Je-kyun and lead actor Jung Seong-hwa, the great-granddaughter Kim Hee-gyeong of the independence activist Kim Nak-won, and the winner of the 2022 Yu Gwan-soon Torch Award Lee So-young. 

104 people received awards in this event and the three cheers were led by descendants of independence activists. The <1919 Torch of Independence> performance and the grand chorus of <March With Me> were also held. 

Yoon and Kim encourage overseas emergency relief teams that showed friendship and solidarity in Turkey

On Tuesday, March 7, President Yoon had a luncheon at the guesthouse with members of the Korea Disaster Relief Team (KDRT), who returned from an emergency relief mission at the site of the earthquake in Turkey. He expressed his gratitude to the relief team for their dedication and hard work. 

He said that the spirit of solidarity among relief workers reawakened that Korea and Turkey are true friends. He said that he was very fortunate and grateful that the relief workers overcame the difficult situation and returned sound and healthy. 

He said that the government and the private sector would jointly raise more than 10 million dollars to support temporary settlements for the victims of the disaster. 

He said that the Korea Shipowner’s Association has decided to donate 250 containers for temporary housing, and the government will make sure that the containers can be transported quickly. 

The team consisted of 142 rescuers saved 8 lives at the earthquake site in Turkiye. President Yoon and First Lady Kim met 119 rescue dogs (Tina, Haetae, Tobaek, and Tori) who were dispatched to the earthquake site and conducted rescue activities for 10 days. They looked at the injured part of the rescue dog that suffered a leg injury during the rescue process and encouraged the officials.