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The government plans to turn a street between Gwanghwamun and Sungnyemun in downtown Seoul into a national landmark and wants to build a modern history museum in an area now occupied by the Gwanghwamun park and the nearby Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
President Lee Myung-bak announced the plans on Monday in a meeting of a government taskforce in charge of celebrations of the republic¡¯s 60th founding anniversary this year.
¡°I have respect for the greatness of all Korean people who have created a history of miracles by achieving modernization and democratization unprecedented in the world in the short period of 60 years,¡± Lee said. "We must make sure that our descendants learn about that history and feel pride in their nation.¡±
Commenting on debate whether priority should be given to the founding of the republic or to the liberation of the country from Japanese occupation, Lee said, "The founding of the republic would have been impossible without liberation and liberation without national founding would have been meaningless. We all should be one at a time when we are marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the republic."
He said the aim was to ¡°make the next six decades an prouder period. If we are disunited at this time, the next 60 years will inevitably be darker than the past 60 successful years."
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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