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`March 1 this year marks the 50th anniversary of the Independence Movement of 1919, when our forefathers rose up and fought with empty hands against the bayonets of then Japanese military rulers to win independence of their country, demonstrating their heroic struggle to the whole world. The March 1 Independence Movement which has become embedded deep in the hearts of our people was first heralded by an uprising of 11 Korean students in Tokyo on February 8, 1919, when a tide of self-determination prevailed among the small nations of the world. Subsequently on March 1, the same year, a declaration of independence signed by 33 independence fighters led by Mr.Son Byong-hee was proclaimed at Pagoda Park in Seoul and this incident immediately touched off a nation-wide independence movement. The Japanese gendarmes with their firearms and swords failed to bring our forefathers into submission, whose struggle was characterized by non-violence. Unflinching students, male and female, marched the streets shouting to thier highest voice ``independence and freedom`` and defying the sabre-rattling Japanese oppressors. They had fought with the noble spirit and acted upon the three-point code of conduct, as set forth in the Declaration of Independence. Through this heroic struggle, they had proved to the world that we are a nation which could defend their independence at the cost of their lives. The Ministry of Communications issues a commemorative stamp on th occasion of the 50th anniversary of the movement recalling the people the spirit of the movement and urging them to join in reviving the nation with that spirit.`