Jincheon County reclaims pro-Japanese property for the state

Jincheon County has achieved a significant milestone by successfully securing the state's ownership of a property linked to a historical pro-Japanese collaborator. This marks the first time a local government in South Korea has pursued and completed the process of returning such assets to the nation.

The property in question is a small 13-square-meter plot of road in Songnim-ri, Iwol-myeon, which was owned by Yi Pung-han, identified as a pro-Japanese collaborator. Although a decision for its return to the state was made in 2009, the land remained unrecovered until Jincheon County's recent initiative.

Kim Seong-hyeon, a team leader at Jincheon County's Civil Affairs and Land Division, confirmed the completion of the registration process through the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport after verifying related documents via the National Archives of Korea. He described the recovered land as a "small but significant achievement."

Jincheon County is not stopping here. The county is actively pursuing the return of four additional properties suspected of being pro-Japanese assets. These include two plots totaling 76 square meters in Haengjeong-ri, Jincheon-eup, two plots totaling 179 square meters in Jang-ri, Jincheon-eup, and a 1,258-square-meter plot in Taerak-ri, Munbaek-myeon.

To facilitate this, Jincheon County established a task force in August last year, comprising local government officials, members of the Patriots and Veterans Affairs, historical experts, journalists, and lawyers. The county, proud of its heritage as the birthplace of 26 independence activists like Yi Sang-seol, is committed to reclaiming these historical assets. The task force has been investigating the appropriateness of inheritance for descendants of pro-Japanese figures across all 171,057 plots of land within the county. Furthermore, the county is tracking the assets of not only 1,005 identified pro-Japanese collaborators but also their 29,887 descendants.

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We confirmed related documents through the National Archives of Korea and completed the registration through the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport last month. It is a leftover piece of land that remained as road, a small but significant achievement.