The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs announced Thursday that it has selected Lee Jae-yu (awarded the Order of Merit for National Foundation, Independence Medal in 2006), Kim Sa-guk (Patriotic Citizen Medal in 2002), and Kang Ju-ryong (Patriotic Citizen Medal in 2007) as "Independence Activists of May" for their dedication to improving the harsh working conditions of Korean laborers during Japanese colonial rule.
Lee Jae-yu organized the "Gyeongseong Troika" in Seoul during the colonial era and engaged in diverse anti-Japanese activities, including organizing labor and farmer groups and guiding student movements through reading circles. Despite repeated arrests and imprisonment, he refused to recant his beliefs and died in Cheongju Protective Prison in 1944.
Kim Sa-guk was arrested and imprisoned in 1919 while preparing the Joseon National Assembly to establish the Hanseong Provisional Government. After his release, he actively participated in the youth movement and organized labor movement groups while traveling between Korea and Japan.
Kang Ju-ryong, a female worker at the Pyongwon Rubber Factory in Pyongyang, staged a protest on the roof of Eulmildae Pavilion in 1931 during a strike against wage cuts imposed on Korean workers. Her "Eulmildae Rooftop Protest" drew public sympathy and garnered widespread social attention and support at the time.
She was later arrested on charges of involvement in the Pyongyang labor union incident. While continuing her struggle in prison, her health deteriorated and she was released on medical bail, but died at the age of 31.
The ministry said the anti-Japanese labor movement these activists led "went beyond a simple struggle for survival rights and developed into a fight for resistance against Japanese imperialism and national independence." It added that their efforts "led to a national movement seeking broader social change and laid the foundation for the modern labor movement."
