文대통령 "제주 4•3 배•보상 계속 노력…국회, 특별법 개정 당부"<br /><br />South Korea remembers the tens of thousands of people killed on Jeju Island some 70 years ago today when the authorities cracked down on civilian protests.<br />Known officially as the April 3rd Jeju Incident, President Moon Jae-in vowed efforts to restore the honor of the victims of the incident.<br />Our Kim Mok-yeon reports.<br />President Moon Jae-in has pledged every effort to compensate the victims of the April 3rd Jeju Incident and their families.<br />Speaking Friday at the annual memorial ceremony, President Moon stressed the importance of uncovering the truth about the April 3 incident, claiming that regardless of the political divide, the country has a duty to restore the honor of the victims based on the facts.<br />To do that, he called for joint efforts with the National Assembly to pass a revised act on the Jeju April 3rd Incident.<br />"We'll continue efforts to ensure that substantive compensation is provided as part of basic justice. I urge the National Assembly to pay special heed to the revised special act on the Jeju April 3rd Incident."<br />The pending bill, submitted in late 2017, calls for the victims and their families to receive financial compensation and for the atrocities to be investigated further.<br />Friday's ceremony, held at the Jeju April 3rd Peace Park, has was scaled down from previous years by a factor of a hundred because of the coronavirus outbreak. It was attended by roughly 1-hundred-50 people mostly families of the victims, politicians and related civic groups.<br />The South Korean President took the podium to express gratitude to the residents of Jeju, who despite their unhealed scars showed solidarity and cooperation in overcoming COVID-19.<br />"Jeju residents have sent masks and financial support to the hardest hit areas of Daegu and Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, and their efforts have become a role model for other regional governments."<br />This was the second time Moon has attended the ceremony as president, and he was the first sitting leader to do so.<br />In his speech two years ago, Moon again expressed a strong determination to completely resolve questions surrounding the incident.<br />Kim Mok-yeon, Arirang News.<br />
