Remains of 25 CPV martyrs laid in coffins in S. Korea

Workers transfer the remains of 25 Chinese soldiers who died in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-53) into caskets in Incheon, South Korea, on November 22, 2023. Photo: Xinhua

The remains of 25 Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV) martyrs who sacrificed their lives in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-53) were casketed in Incheon, South Korea on Wednesday. On Thursday, they will be returned to the home country.

The ceremony to lay the 25 remains in coffins was held on Wednesday morning. Personnel from the Chinese Ministry of Veterans Affairs, the Chinese Embassy in South Korea, representatives of Chinese students and Chinese companies in South Korea, as well as officials from the South Korean Ministry of National Defense, and personnel responsible for the excavation and identification of the remains attended the ceremony, according to China Central Television (CCTV).

All members of the Chinese delegation bowed three times to the CPV martyrs and presented flowers. The South Korean side placed the remains in coffins after the memorial service by the Chinese side, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

According to the Chinese Ministry of Veterans Affairs, after the embalming ceremony, a handover ceremony will be held at the Incheon International Airport in South Korea on Thursday. Then, the remains of the martyrs will be transported back home on a Chinese Air Force Y-20 transport aircraft.

A welcome ceremony will held at Shenyang Taoxian International Airport in Northeast China's Liaoning Province on Thursday, followed by a burial ceremony at the Shenyang Martyrs' Cemetery on Friday morning.

Senior Chinese officials will be invited to attend the welcome ceremony in Shenyang and deliver speeches to highlight the country's respect, said Li Jingxian, an official from Chinese Ministry of Veterans Affairs.

Li said representatives from the regions of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan will also be invited to the welcome and burial ceremony to boost patriotism.

Starting from 2014, South Korea has been transferring to China the remains and items of the Chinese martyrs discovered in South Korea. With the return of the 25 martyrs this time, 938 CPV martyrs will have been returned to the motherland, CCTV reported.

Since 2015, the PLA Air Force has sent aircraft to South Korea every year to carry out pick-up missions. Starting in 2020, the Air Force began sending the domestic large transport aircraft Y-20 to carry out this task, according to the Air Force.

Li noted this year's return of CPV martyrs' remains places emphasis on the country's respect and care as 2023 marks the 70th anniversary of the victory in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea.

On preserving the CPV martyrs' remains, Li noted that the ministry initiated in 2020 a platform to look for relatives of the martyrs. Currently, the DNA extraction and identification work has been completed for the 913 CPV martyrs' remains that have been brought back.

Efforts are being made to confirm the identities of the martyrs and notify their relatives, Li said.