The Thai-Korean War Veterans Association, under the Royal Patronage of His Majesty the King, has come to the Haroon mosque cemetery on October 24th to lay a wreath in memory of Thai-Muslim veterans who died in the Korean War and to commemorate their sacrifice.
The ceremony is led by General Bandit Malai-arisoon, the President of the Thai-Korean War Veterans Association, also under the Royal Patronage of His Majesty the King, along with 17 other departments and organizations in Thailand, including the Royal Thai Army, Royal Thai Air force, Royal Thai Navy, Embassy of the Republic of Korea, and more.
Mr. Thanarat Watcharapisud, Imam (leader) of the Haroon mosque, said the ceremony “is in memory of our veterans who fought to the death on the Korean Peninsula more than sixty years ago. At that time, the Americans were helping Korea, but they found it very difficult to fight both the North Korean and Chinese armies. Therefore, they asked the Thai military to support them. Many Thai soldiers participated or volunteered to go to Korea without even knowing the location of Korea.”
“The fighting was very fierce. Many Thai soldiers died, but we achieved the mission of taking back ‘Pork Chop Hill’ from the Chinese army. This is the reason why the Republic of Korea government was very grateful and happy to welcome Thai soldiers.” he added.
“About fifty years ago, Mr. Tuan Suvannasat, Sheikhul Islam of Thailand at that time, suggested that the remains of Thai-Muslim soldiers should be placed in the Haroon Mosque cemetery, according to Islamic principles. The Prime Minister at that time, General Sarit Thanarat, agreed and ordered that they should be buried there. We had a ceremony for the burial of these veterans here, we reviving this ceremony each year and today we are also remembering all of these soldiers. We are grateful for the support for this event and are thankful to all participants.” he told a Thai PBS World reporter.
