![A monument to the Donghak Peasant Revolution in Jeongeup [Jeongeup City Hall website]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/08/25/news-p.v1.20250627.9c7365c88a3e4ec0936c6568a4e4ecd0_P1.png)
North Jeolla Province will provide an annual stipend of 1.2 million won ($869) per person to 723 descendants of Donghak Peasant Revolution participants.
The province said Tuesday the payments will be made under a provincial ordinance on support for Donghak Peasant Revolution commemorative projects, covering descendants who have lived in the province continuously for at least one year.
The total project budget for this year stands at 868 million won, with the province and individual cities and counties sharing costs at a 30-to-70 ratio.
The province initially allocated funds for 549 recipients in its main budget last December, then expanded coverage to 723 people through a supplementary budget last month. The per-person annual stipend was also doubled from 600,000 won to 1.2 million won.
Eligible recipients are children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren recognized and registered as descendants under the Special Act on the Restoration of Honor of Donghak Peasant Revolution Participants. They must have been registered as residents of North Jeolla Province as of Jan. 1 this year and have lived there continuously for at least one year. Most descendants reside in Jeonju, Jeongeup, Imsil, Iksan and Buan.
Applications will be accepted at local township and neighborhood offices in recipients' areas of residence from Sept. 4 to Sept. 22. City and county offices and the Donghak Peasant Revolution Memorial Foundation will then verify eligibility and finalize the list of recipients by mid-October.
The province plans to disburse the stipends between November and December, though the timing may vary for some cities and counties depending on their budget schedules.
In addition, the province plans to petition the central government to expand national recognition of the Donghak Peasant Revolution, including incorporating its spirit into the preamble of the Constitution and conferring state honors on participants.
The Donghak Peasant Revolution was a large-scale popular uprising in 1894, during the late Joseon period, led by Jeon Bong-jun and other Donghak leaders together with farmers who sought to root out feudal corruption and resist foreign encroachment. The movement is historically significant for its effort to defend national sovereignty against foreign interference, and it later gave rise to the anti-Japanese righteous army movement. Its birthplace is Gobu-myeon in Jeongeup, North Jeolla Province.
jshan@heraldcorp.com
