ICC Representatives Present at a Public Diplomacy Event Held by the ROK’s Embassy in China

On November 23, Cheng Yu, Executive Secretary General of the ICC, and Xin Shaosong, Executive Deputy Director of the ICC’s Office were invited to attend the opening ceremony of the special exhibition “Let’s Go, to Our Homeland, the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea Returns”. The exhibition was at the Korean Cultural Center, China, supported by the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in China, and jointly held by the Korean Cultural Center, China and the National Memorial of the Korean Provisional Government.

The exhibition introduces 63 cultural relics related to the establishment and activities of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea and the return of the key members of the Provisional Government to their homeland, as well as the National Welcoming Ceremony for the Triumph of the Provisional Government, which was held at the Dongdaemun Stadium. Kim Hui-gon, Director of the National Memorial of the Korean Provisional Government, delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the exhibition and said, “This exhibition is the first special opening exhibition held abroad after the opening of the Memorial, and this year marks the 78th anniversary of the return of the Provisional Government to homeland. It is very meaningful to hold the exhibition in China, where the Provisional Government stayed.” Chung Jae-ho, Ambassador of the Embassy of the ROK in China, delivered a speech at the end, saying, “The continuation and growth of people-to-people exchanges are important foundation for the development of relations between any countries. We look forward to the continuous progress of people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the ROK and China.”

During the exhibition, representatives of the ICC, along with Kim Jin-gon, Minister Counselor of the ROK’s Embassy in Beijing and Director of the Korean Cultural Center, China, exchanged views on issues of common concern for both sides, such as strengthening dialogue and communication between China and ROK at all levels, deepening economic and trade cooperation between both countries, promoting people-to-people exchanges, and boosting new development of the strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries, as well as the forthcoming 10th Trilateral Foreign Ministers’ Meeting of ROK, Japan and China to be held in Busan, Korea.

Related Information 

The Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was established in Shanghai, China, in April 1919 and had stationed in China for 26 years. During these 26 years, the Provisional Government’s office had moved from Shanghai, Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Changsha, Guangzhou, Chongqing, etc. On September 3, 1945, the Provisional Government’ State Council issued the “Imminent Policies of the Provisional Government to be Implemented” and declared that it would return to the homeland. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea in 1992, China’s and ROK’s governments have begun to search for and protect the sites of the Provisional Government in China and have established museums one after another to display the historical relics. Among them, the Museum of Former Site of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea (Shanghai) was officially opened to the public in 1993, and has received more than 5 million visitors, including many ROK’s former Presidents, Prime Ministers and Speakers of National Assembly.