hankyoreh

which opened in October 2011.

By Oh Yoon-joo, Cheongju correspondent

A memorial ceremony was held on the morning of July 26 at Peace Park in Nogeun Village to soothe the spirits of victims shot there by US soldiers in the early stages of the Korean War, 62 years ago.

The park was built near the site of the incident in Yeongdong County, North Chungcheong province. Around five hundred people attended the ceremony, which was organized by victims’ surviving family members.

The ceremony consisted of a floral tribute, incense burning, a memorial address, and a memorial performance. “We organized this ceremony to shed new light on the bloodstained history of Nogeun Village and soothe the wronged souls,” said Jeong Eun-yong, 89, who chairs the association of surviving families.

Jeong added that it was especially meaningful to honor the spirits of the dead in Peace Park following its 2011 opening.

The Nogeun Village incident took place from July 25 to 29, 1950, a month after the beginning of the Korean War. Civilians evacuating the Yeongdong area along the Gyeongbu railway line were shot down by US soldiers in the area near Ssanggul Bridge. The government officially recognized 226 casualties from the incident in 2005 based on reports from surviving family members, including 150 killed, thirteen unaccounted for, and 63 suffering from disabilities as a result.

Peace Park was opened in October of last year on the former site of Nosong Elementary School near the site where the massacre took place. It was built at state expense for 19.1 billion won (US$16.7 million) after family members expressed the wish of rehabilitating the victims’ reputations and allowing their spirits to rest.

Since its opening, it has been used to teach about peace and human rights, with some 17,000 visitors to date, including many young people and students.

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]