Statue of Seo Jae-pil (Songjae)

This statue is erected in Seodaemun Independence Park to commemorate Seo Jae-pil, a reformist and independence activist from Boseong, South Jeolla Province. Songjae Seo Jae-pil published Korea's first private newspaper, 'The Independent,' on April 7, 1896. With the cooperation of Yun Chi-ho and Yi Sang-jae, he founded the Independence Club, demolished Yeongeunmun Gate—a symbol of subservience to China—and built Independence Gate on that site with public donations as a symbol of Korean independence. He also remodeled the former Mohwagwan into Independence Hall, using it as a meeting place and office for the Independence Club. Through debates, he gathered citizens to discuss national independence and reform, organized the All-People's Congress to oppose Russia's demand to lease Jeolyeongdo Island in Busan, and greatly advanced the nation's spirit of independence and civil rights. After the March 1st Movement in 1919, when the Provisional Government established the Korean Commission in Washington, D.C., he served as its chairman, conducting diplomatic activities for the independence movement. He devoted his entire fortune to the independence cause, sacrificing himself for the nation's liberation, but passed away in the United States on January 5, 1951, at the age of 87.

Address: 251 Tongil-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul (Hyeonjeo-dong)