Patriots and Veterans Affairs Vice Minister Kang Yun-jin, left, presents a plaque of appreciation to Jeong Su-heon, head of LG Sciencepark, during a ceremony at the facility in Seoul, Thursday. Courtesy of LG Group
During the darkest days of the 1950-53 Korean War, an elite contingent of Ethiopian soldiers traveled thousands of miles across oceans to defend a nation they had never known.
The Kagnew Battalion — whose name translates to "destroyers of the enemy" — compiled a legendary record on the central front, engaging in 253 battles with no prisoners of war surrendered. Today, the blood shed by those 6,000 soldiers remains a fundamental bedrock of Korea's modern peace and prosperity.
Seven decades later, that historical debt is being repaid through music. Korean electronics giant LG on Friday announced a comprehensive support program for the Kagnew Choir, a musical ensemble composed of third-generation descendants of the Ethiopian veterans. In collaboration with Korea's Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs and the nonprofit Warm Mind, LG will construct a state-of-the-art practice studio inside the Korean War Veterans Hall in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, equipped with soundproofing, audio systems and digital IT hardware.
