해방 후 안중근 기념사업의 역사적 의의

Abstract

The first An Jung-geun memorial project after Korea’s liberation was to organize an association for the realization of erecting a bronze statue of An Jung-geun. This means that An Jung-geun was positively judged by the people in Korea after liberation. Since then An Jung-geun memorial project was chiefly conducted by a memorial event on the day of his death for the country. An Jung-geun memorial project was to erect his bronze statue and hold a memorial service on the occasion of the day of his death for the country and the day of his conducting patriotic deed till early 1960s since the liberation from Japan’s colonial rule. The term of “memorial” is to pay a tribute to the memory of somebody and further more, the real meaning of “memorial” is to draw a lesson out of it. And the supreme meaning of “memorial” should be based on a plain truth. For this, materials about An Jung-geun should be collected and studies based on them should be made, however, several plays and books were only published during the period and the Catholic Church side expressed its passive stance about them, too. From early 1960s to early 1990s An Jung-Ggun memorial project progressed under national support and attention. The establishment of An Jung-geun memorial hall and the designation of his autographs as a national treasure were accomplished by support and attention on the level of the government. Such attention and support led to a collection of materials about An Jung-geun and formed the basis of a study of him. The Catholic Church side which had convicted him of his patriotic deed also expressed its opinion in a memorial service and papers that it should be recognized and understood as a patriotic deed. An Jung-geun memorial project was progressed in Northeast China with Harbin as a center, too. During the period the foundation for his memorial project was laid at home and abroad. From early 1990s His memorial project was progressed very actively. He was selected as a cultural figure and patriot and the excavation project of his remains was progressed in collaboration with North Korea. And the Catholic Church focused on the side of a believer “An Jung-geun” and his patriotic deed. As they pushed actively ahead with his memorial project in China with the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and China, and a society of the research of An Jung-geun was organized in America and Japan, it was actively progressed at home and abroad. As time went by, his memorial project diversified and was promoted. This means that he occupied an important position in the history of Korea’s racial movement and his “The Orient Peace Thought” and patriotic deed assumed great historical meaning. Therefore to diversify and spread various kinds of projects to commemorate his patriotic deed assumes historical value and meaning. All the while, there were many cases of a single-shot or overlapped event in his memorial project and follow-up service left something to be desired. From now on his memorial project should be progressed in direction of making his spirit go to the future and placing his patriotic deed in the side of international peace. In order to do that, thorough arrangement and research on historical materials about his spirit and patriotical deed should be made, and then the study and evaluation of him should be made on this basis. The arrangement and research on historical materials about him is to establish an invisible An Jung-geun memorial hall.