Why we need an official Korean War Memorial in Melbourne

We need an official War Memorial in Melbourne to honour the service and noble sacrifices of the Australians who served in the Korean War, 1950-53, in defence of freedom and democracy on the Korean Peninsula. A Melbourne War Memorial will further strengthen the long-standing and deep friendship between the Republic of Korea and Australia. Currently there are three Korean War Memorials in Australia, located in Canberra (2000), Sydney (2009) and the Gold Coast (2011). Globally there are 292 Korean War Memorials in 20 countries that participated in the war.

Framework for establishing the Melbourne Korean War Memorial

• The fundraising for the Melbourne Korean War Memorial commenced in January 2016, and the construction of the Memorial is planned to be completed in June 2017.
• This project is steered by the Melbourne Korean War Memorial Committee Inc. which was launched in January 2016.
• The President of the Committee is CHOI Jong-gon (President of the National Unification Advisory Council Melbourne).
• The Committee's Vice Presidents include Vic Dey (President of the Korea Veterans Association of Australia) and PARK Dong-gu (Member NUAC Melbourne).
• Fund-sourcing plan for the Memorial:
• The Memorial is estimated to cost AUS $500,000 (This estimated figure excludes the cost of purchasing land where the Memorial will be located. We are seeking a land donation from a benefactor, potentially the Victorian Government).
• To reach the $500,000 target we are seeking to raise $250,000 from Koreans residing in Victoria, Victorians and organizations in Victoria and $250,000 from the Government of the Republic of Korea.
• Site of the Memorial: potentially in the Shrine of Remembrance or in the Botanic Gardens.
• Design and construction: there will be competitions for the design and construction of the Memorial.

How the Memorial will be maintained

Once the Memorial is constructed, its ownership will be transferred to the Victorian Government. The Melbourne Korean War Memorial Committee will remain after the construction for the maintenance of the Memorial.

Overview of the Korean War and Australia's involvement in the conflict

• The Korean War commenced on the 25th of June 1950 and ended on the 27th July 1953.
• Combat forces from 16 allied countries; The United States, United Kingdom, Philippines, Thailand, Canada, Turkey, Australia (17,000 service personnel in total including 2,282 combat soldiers), New Zealand, Ethiopia, Greece, France, Colombia, Belgium, South Africa, Netherlands and Luxembourg participated in the war, supporting the Republic of Korea through the United Nations Command.
• Five countries; Denmark, India, Italy, Norway and Sweden provided humanitarian aid.
• There were 987,000 South Korean soldiers and 804,700 South Korean civilian casualties from the Korean War. United Nations forces suffered 151,500 casualties, of which 339 Australians were killed and 1,216 wounded.
• The Korean War cost US $30 billion in 1953 (US $341 billion today).