The government awards independence patriots three times a year on March 1st, August 15th (Liberation Day), and November 17th (Memorial Day for Fallen Patriots). This year, 96 independence patriots received awards on March 1st, of which only 1 was a woman. Since the awards began in 1962, the percentage of female patriots has remained at around 3.6%. There are voices suggesting that, compared to the actual contributions of women to the independence movement, the awards for female patriots are insufficient.
◇ Female independence patriots, a drastic decrease from 53 in 2023 to 3 in 2024, and 1 in 2025
The only female independence patriot awarded on this year's March 1st was Park Seung-im. He was born in 1920 and was arrested in 1941 while encouraging fellow students at the Women's Dental Science School in Tokyo, Japan, to participate in the independence movement.
The number of women receiving independence patriot awards significantly increased from 2018 to 2023. In 2018, there were 60, in 2019 there were 114, in 2020 there were 21, in 2021 there were 51, in 2022 there were 62, and in 2023 there were 53, totaling 361. This accounts for 54% of the total female patriots (664) awarded from 1962 to 2025.
However, the number of female independence patriots awarded dropped sharply to 3 last year. They were independence patriots Eom Bok-soo, Kim Yang-soon, and Kim Shin-gyeong, who participated in the independence movement in 1919. This marks the first time in 13 years that the number of female independence patriots has fallen to a single digit since 2011.
So far this year, there has only been 1 female independence patriot awarded. Consequently, among the 353 total independence patriot awards last year and this year, only 4 were women, dropping the percentage to 1.1%.
◇ After a change in criteria in 2018, numbers increased and then decreased again… The Ministry of Veterans Affairs said, "We will actively discover female patriots."
The discovery of independence activists is overseen by the Ministry of Veterans Affairs. Twenty researchers with master's degrees or higher have been assigned to this task. A ministry official noted, "It is not easy to secure evidence materials such as verdicts from the Japanese colonial period," adding, "Since changing the award criteria in 2018, we have unearthed many female independence patriots, but we are facing difficulties again."
In the past, the independence patriot awards were primarily given to those confirmed to have endured imprisonment for more than three months for the independence movement. This criteria was criticized as being too strict and for making it difficult to present relevant documentation.
As a result, starting in 2018, it became possible to receive awards for patriots simply upon confirming that they had participated in the independence movement, regardless of the period of imprisonment. Furthermore, for students, just confirming that they were expelled from school for participating in the independence movement is sufficient to be recognized as patriots.
However, there are still criticisms that the discovery of female independence patriots is lacking. It is suggested that cases where couples participated in the independence movement together or where wives supported their husbands' independence activities may not be adequately recognized.
A ministry official stated, "We are striving to discover as many female independence patriots as possible."