Submission of waiver of government medals
The fact that Dongguk University professor Lee Cheol-gi (65) submitted to the school a ‘confirmation of waiver of government awards for retired teachers’ stating that he would not receive government medals before retirement known
The Medal of Merit is a government award given to retired teachers in recognition of their dedication to the development of education.
Professor Lee posted on his Facebook page on the 27th, “I will be retiring from Dongguk University at the end of this August, so I picked up a pen because I thought I would have to say hello through Facebook.”
In the confirmation letter, “If you are a retired (planned) person at the end of August 2022 (honorary, retirement age, member of the Diet), you can receive a reward at the end of August 2022 according to the calculation of your tenure as a recipient of a government award for a retired teacher from your affiliated institution. In spite of being informed, I renounce the reward for the following reasons, and promise not to raise any objection to it in the future.”
The confirmation letter must directly state the ‘reason for waiver’. Regarding the reason for giving up, Professor Lee said, ‘There are many people who do better work but do not receive rewards. I have no desire to receive an award,’ he wrote in his own handwriting.
Professor Lee posted on Facebook, “When clergy and civil servants reach their retirement age, they are given medals according to their years of training. He said that he would not accept it, so he had to write down his reasons.” He said, “Although the medal is given in the name of the state, receiving a certificate with Yun Seok-yeol’s name on it felt too humiliating for my pride and conscience.” . Then he said, “It’s like receiving something from the governor-general of Joseon.”
Born in Incheon, Professor Lee entered the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Dongguk University in 1977 and completed his Ph.D. in Political Science at Dongguk University in August 1993. After that, he served as a professor in the Department of Political Science and Diplomacy at Dongguk University.
He served as the policy chairman of the Unification Association of the Citizens’ Coalition for Economic Justice and a permanent executive member, and also served as a co-representative of the Citizens’ Coalition for Peaceful Unification. Shortly after Roh Moo-hyun was elected as President, he served as an advisor to the Presidential Transition Committee, and ran as a candidate for the Democratic United Party in the 19th National Assembly election in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon.
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