KT&G (CEO Min Young-jin) is to carry out volunteer
work with undergraduate volunteers on July 18 to support the project of
recovering the remains of fallen army soldiers on Mt. Daeamsan in Inje-gun, Gangwon-do.
The project of recovering the remains of fallen army soldiers is undertaken
by the Ministry of Defense to commemorate the persons of national merit who
gave their lives for their country through the recovery of the remains of the 6.25
War dead and establishment of their identities. Among domestic corporations,
KT&G is the only company that has provided support to this project for eight
years since 2006, with a total of ₩1.4 billion.
This volunteer work has been planned for university students who did not
experience the horrors of war to remember the sacrifices of the war veterans and
to feel patriotic. KT&G staff and 20 students from the Gangwon-do region will
participate. After being briefed on the overall recovery procedure, volunteers
are to clean up the area around the recovery site to facilitate operation and
deliver gifts of encouragement to the recovery and identification team.
Undergraduate volunteer Hwang Eun-mee (22, Kangwon National Univ.) said, “I heard that recovery work is becoming increasingly difficult after
passing more than 60 years since the war,” adding that “I want to do what little I can to help the deceased patriots return
to their families to rest in peace through this volunteer work.”
An official with the Ministry of Defense Recovery and
Identification Team added, “For the remains recovered to be returned to the bereaved families, identification
through comparative DNA sequence analysis is indispensable, and for this, DNA
sample registration by the bereaved family is absolutely essential.” DNA samples
may be registered at the public health center nearby.