Honoring 70th anniversary of Phl troops in Korean War
The Philippines was the third country in the world that sent ground troops to Korea, following the US and UK, and 7,420 Filipino soldiers served in Korea for the three years from 19 September 1950 when they arrived in Busan port to 13 May 1950
The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs (MPVA) hosted a ceremony to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Philippine Forces’ participation in the Korean War — and the Filipino soldiers who arrived in Busan Korea on 19 September 1950 — at the Korean War Monument to the Philippine Armed Forces in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do.
While complying with regulations to prevent the spread of COVID-19, participants including Minister Park Sam-duck, Charge de Affairs Christian de Jesus of the Philippine Embassy, Vice Admiral Stuart Campbell Mayer who represents the United Nations Command as Deputy Commander and Goyang Mayor Lee Jae-joon, deputy commander of the ROK Army 1 Corps, will pay the utmost tribute to the fallen heroes.
The Philippines was the third country in the world that sent ground troops to Korea, following the United States and United Kingdom, and 7,420 Filipino soldiers served in Korea for the three years from 19 September 1950 when they arrived in Busan
port to 13 May 1950.
MPVA plans to hold a memorial ceremony and the music concert to coincide with the international memorial day for UN veterans.
The Filipino soldiers operated alongside the United States 25th Infantry Division from 1 October 1950 and made great achievements in the Battle of Yultong in April 1951 and among them, 112 made the ultimate sacrifice, 288 were wounded, 16 went missing in action, and 41 became prisoners of war.
The Philippine troops had not only supported Korea to reconstruct itself after the war, but also contributed a small number of troops to the United Nations Command to overseas the armistice.
To mark the 70th anniversary of the Korean War, the MPVA has several programs in place to express the country’s gratitude to UN veterans of the Korean War including the Filipino veterans.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the MPVA held the 70th anniversary of the Korean War commemoration ceremony and the UN Forces’ participation day ceremony, expressing the country’s appreciation to UN veterans. Last May, the MPVA sent facial masks to the veterans in the Philippines to help them fight against COVID-19.
In November, the MPVA plans to hold a memorial ceremony and the music concert to coincide with the international memorial day for UN veterans (11 November).
Filipino veterans and their families have expressed special friendship between the two countries in recent interviews with the Korean Embassy and the Korean Cultural Center in the Philippines.
The MPVA said “we plan various programs and policies to honor and remember the service and sacrifice of UN veterans of the Korean War, including Filipino veterans, and continue our shared history and legacy of the Korean War with their descendant and our future generations.