HD Construction Equipment and South Korea’s Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs have erected a memorial wall in Ethiopia honoring 122 soldiers who lost their lives defending South Korea during the Korean War, the company said Wednesday.
The wall stands at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Addis Ababa and bears the names of the fallen soldiers. The unveiling ceremony took place Wednesday, coinciding with International Memorial Day for UN Korean War Veterans.
HD Construction Equipment President Moon Jae-young, South Korean Ambassador Koo Hong-seok, government officials, veterans and bereaved families attended the ceremony.
The project follows a May agreement to establish memorials in countries that sent troops to support South Korea during the war. Ethiopia was selected as the first site, with the company covering the entire construction cost.
Individual plaques bear the names of all 122 soldiers, while inscriptions in Korean, English, and Amharic convey gratitude and remembrance. A bronze relief depicts members of Ethiopia’s Kagnew Battalion marching alongside a lion, a national symbol.
Drawn from Emperor Haile Selassie’s imperial guard, the battalion served under United Nations Command during the Korean War.
The memorial took approximately five months to complete following the April reburial of the soldiers’ remains from beneath the cathedral to a new cemetery on its grounds.
Ethiopia was the only African nation to deploy ground troops during the war. About 3,500 soldiers served in the Kagnew Battalion, which fought 253 engagements without defeat, according to the company.
HD Construction Equipment also plans to establish a training center with local institutions to provide equipment operation and maintenance courses for young Ethiopians, including descendants of Korean War veterans.
“We hope the memorial wall will serve as a place to remember the sacrifices of Ethiopian veterans who fought for South Korea and pass their legacy on to future generations,” Moon said.
yejinlim@heraldcorp.com
