The failure of the March First Movement

The failure of the March First Movement showed that the Korean bourgeoisie nationalist leaders could

not lead our anti-Japanese independence movement. The social class mix of the march leaders was such

that they were not totally opposed to the Japanese rule of Korea. Their objective was to extract

concessions from the Japanese authorities so as to protect and enhance their class standing in the Korean

society. The fact that many of the leaders became after the march pro-Japanese collaborators and social

reformists under the Japanese rule supports the above assertion..

At the time, Korea had no progressive elements that were stoing enough to counter reformism. There was

no major industrial proletarian class consciousness that could fight against bourgeois reformism at the

time. Our toiling mass was still untouched by Marxism-Leninism and lacked organized leadership. It

would be years before the Korea's working class had at last a vanguard that fought for and protected its

class interest; it had to make a long hazardous journey. In the aftermath of the failed March First

Movement, the Korean people came to realize that a strong leadership was needed to gain independence.

Although, millions of Korean people joined the movement, there was no people's organization or class-

root leadership and the movement was hampered by divisiveness and ineffectual spontaneity.

The failed March First Movement taught us that in order to win our fight for independence and freedom,

we must have effective revolutionary leadership and organizational structures; we must use the right

tactics and strategies; and we must debunk toadyism and build up our strength on our own.

The March First Movement, even though failed, showed to the world that the Korean people did not wish

to be slaves of other nations, that they were strongly self-reliant and self-deterministic, that they were

willing to die for their country. The March First Movement shocked the Japanese imperialists into

imposing harsh martial laws and brain-washing indoctrination policies.

The March First Movement put an end to Korea's nascent bourgeois nationalist movement and the

Korean people's struggle for independence entered a new stage. The loud hurrahs for independence that

shook our land of misfortune and reverberated throughout the world kept on ringing in my ears all

through that summer; the ringing forced me to grow up faster. The Potong Gate boulevard, shrouded in

smoke and sparks of intense fighting between the marchers and the Japanese police, opened a new venue

in my world-view. Shouting "Long Live Korea" squeezed between grownups and on my tiptoes to see

between their legs ended my age of innocence; my childhood ended abruptly on that day.

The March First Movement placed me in the rank of the people and left an image on my eyes of the true

nature of the Korean people. Whenever I hear the echo of the March First hurrahs in my mind's ears, I

feel so proud of the Korean people's unbending determination and heroism.

A letter from Father arrived in that Summer. Along with the letter, there was a "Goldfish" calligraph

y set of a brush and ink, made in China. Father wanted me to become proficient in writing. I immediately put

the set in use, I ground out some ink in water, dipped the brush in it and wrote out three large letters -

"Ah Buh Ji" (father). That night, the family gathered around a dim kerosene lamp and read Father's letter

over and over again. Uncle Hyong Rok read it three times. He was normally restless and vibrant, but he

was slow and deliberate like an old man while reading the letter. Mother quickly glanced over the letter

and handed it me, asking me to read it aloud for Grandpa and Grandma. Even though I had not started

my formal schooling, Father had taught me how to read..PAGE 31-32