The 4th Branch (Manager Kim Do-yeon) of Gangnam-gu Municipal Chapter visited the 3rd Korean Army division at the front line on June 7th to honor the occasions of the Month of Veterans and Protecting the Homeland.

The visit was arranged as one of the events of the Peaceful Grand March Along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) of “Towards Peaceful Unification Crossing the Wall of Division Along 155 Mile of Cease Fire Line. Last December, Hyun Kyung-dae, Executive Vice-chairperson of NUAC and 30 members of the Executive Committee paid a visit to the same army division.

Kim Do-yeon, manager of the branch of Gangnam-gu Municipal Chapter, reflected, "We were able to experience and watch life of the soldiers protecting our homeland. Our visit to the front line was a good opportunity to inspire the will of national unification and provided a creative and positive learning experience for preparing for unification.“

He added, "In fact, the 3rd Army Division is where I served while I was in the army, and today's visit was deeply impressive to me. Senior members of the Association of the Persons of National Merit Who Participated in the Korea War and Distinguished Military Services participated in the visit, despite their old age."

The 4th Branch of the Gangnam-gu Municipal Chapter presented food, beverage, and medicine worthy of US$8,000 to the 3rd Army Division for the soldiers.

The core project of Gangnam-gu Municipal Chapter, the “Grand March Towards Peaceful Unification Along DMZ,” was launched at the 22nd Army Division at Goseong-gun, Gangwon Province last October. The next grand march will be hosted by the 2nd Branch of the Municipal Chapter.

The members of the delegation from the Gangnam-gu Municipal Chapter watched the North Korean territory from the general outpost and surveyed the soldiers' barracks and their living environments.

Cheolwon County, where the 3rd Army Division is located, boasts a breathtaking scenery. The council members also visited Mt. Osung, which is the advanced base of the central front line and the old Mt. Keumkang Railroad Bridge, which was destroyed during the Korean War. The bridge used to connect Cheolwon County with Mt. Keumkang before the war.

One of the council members watching the destruction of the bridge said, "I am sure that the broken railroad, which used to connect the South and North, will be re-connected. The hearts of the Korean people separated will be connected as well."

The 3rd Army Division is one of the oldest of the eight army divisions, which were established at the early stage of modernizing the Korean army, and the symbol of the 3rd Army Division is a skeleton. When the Korea War broke out in 1950 by North Korean provocation, young volunteers for the military service in the 3rd Army Division drew a skeleton on their helmets, pledging to themselves that, "I will regain my hometown even after I die and become a skeleton."

The Skeleton Unit broke through the 38th Parallel (the line dividing the Korean Peninsula into North and South by the resolution of the former allied powers, including the U.S.A. and U.S.S.R.) for the first time on Oct. 1, 1950, after North Korea invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950. Currently, October 1st is nationally recognized as Armed Forces Day of South Korea in commemoration of breaking through the 38th Parallel during the Korea War.

Jo Dong-yong, Vice-chairperson of Gangwon Municipal Chapter, Kang Seok-ho, deputy head of Gangnam-gu Municipal Chapter, Rep. Han Ki-ho and Rep. Shon In-chun (also member of the Standing Committee of NUAC), National Defense Committee of Korean Parliament, Yu Byeong-su, senior advisor of Gangnam-gu Municipal Chapter, Kim Seung-chwi, 2nd branch manager of Gangnum-gu Municipal Chapter, Lee Yeong-jae, secretary, and Go Yong-seok, secretary of the 4th Branch of the Municipal Chapter, and Kang Jeong-suk, administration manager, attended the event with 40 other council members.

Comfort bags for the soldiers were presented by the visiting delegation of the municipal chapters. On October 7th, the council members of the Gangnam-gu Municipal Chapter plan to walk along the ceasefire line that extends 155 miles in October and announce the wish for unification at Imjinkak Pavilion facing the military demarcation line. Previously, the municipal chapter organized an event where members symbolically mixed the water and soil of Baekdusan Mountain at the northern tip of North Korea and those of Hallasan Mountain at the southern tip of South Korea last year, wishing for the peaceful unification of their homeland.