Order of Merit for National Foundation (Photo: Yonhap)
President Moon Jae-in posthumously awarded on Wednesday medals of honor to two Korean immigrants in Hawaii for their role in supporting independence fighters while residing on the island.
In a ceremony in Honolulu, Moon bestowed the Order of Merit for National Foundation on Kim No-di and Ahn Jung-song.
Kim was a champion of gender equality since her student days in the U.S., exposing the violation of Korean women's rights by imperial Japan in 1919 at the first meeting of representatives of Korean Americans held in Philadelphia.
Ahn also financially supported Korean independence efforts as an executive of the Korean Women's Association in America.
It marked the first time that a South Korean president held a medal-awarding ceremony abroad for those recognized for independence activities during Japan's colonial rule.
Ahead of the ceremony, Moon visited the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific and paid tribute to war dead, including those who were killed during the Korean War.
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