South Korean independence fighter's remains to return home after 105 years

Seoul, Nov 12 (IANS) The remains of South Korean independence fighter Lee Ui-gyeong, known for the autobiographical fiction 'The Yalu River Flows' that portrays life during Japan's 1910-45 colonisation, will return home from Germany this week, 105 years after Lee left the nation, the veterans ministry said on Tuesday.

Lee's remains are set to arrive at Incheon International Airport on Saturday, following a memorial and send-off ceremony held at Lee's grave site in the southern German municipality of Grafelfing, according to the ministry.

A burial ceremony will take place at Daejeon National Cemetery in Daejeon, 140 kilometres south of Seoul, on Sunday, reports Yonhap news agency, citing the ministry statement.

Born in Haeju, in the modern-day North Korean province of South Hwanghae, in 1899, Lee joined the independence movement but was later forced into exile in Shanghai in 1919.

In 1920, Lee travelled to Germany, where he helped raise awareness of the independence movement and published 'The Yalu River Flows,' which was later carried in German school textbooks.

Lee died from stomach cancer in 1950.

South Korea has repatriated the remains of independence activists since 1946. Lee's remains will be the 149th to be repatriated, according to the ministry.

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