Coming on the heels of the carnage and suffering of the Second World War, it’s understandable that the Korean War (1950-53) would become known as The Forgotten War.
After all, the Second World War had the word “world” in it, meaning it was waged all over the globe. It stretched from Europe to northern Africa, through the Mediterranean, and from Asia to remote Pacific Islands. In fact, its tentacles even reached into the normally peaceful waters of the Gulf of St. Lawrence — our neighbourhood.
By contrast the conflict in Korea was confined to a single troubled Asian peninsula on the other side of the world. But as remote as Korea may have been in 1950, between 75 to 100 Prince Edward Islanders sailed off to fight there on behalf of Canada and the United Nations.
They were among nearly 27,000 other Canadians who fought in what was by all accounts a bitter and savage war. Testament to that is the fact 516 Canadians died in the conflict, eight of whom were Islanders.
With only four years separating the end of the Second World War and the Korean War, the Canadian population was sick and tired of war and for the most part was tuned out. But while the fighting may not have attracted the attention of the folks back home, it certainly got the attention of the participants. Fighting conditions were appalling and all the deadly tricks learned in the Second World War came into play in the hostilities. Countless thousands were killed on both sides.
But for all the death and suffering, it was a conflict centered in a very specific part of the world, a long way from home, and its participants were never accorded the same level of support as those who took part in the earlier, seemingly more grander, world wars.
To put the level of respect accorded the Korean War veterans in perspective, all you have to do is compare Art Hiscock’s return from Korea to the reception received by those who fought in the Second World War. Where thousands of people turned out for parades and celebrations to mark the end of the Second World War, when Hiscock returned from Korea only his wife was there to greet him at the airport.
Hiscock, 82, lives in Summerside and was on hand for this week’s special ceremony there that paid tribute to the veterans of the Korea War.
Earlier this year the Senate of Canada approved a motion to recognize and endorse July 27 each year as National Korean War Veterans Day.
A few years ago a monument was unveiled in Ottawa to the “Canadian Fallen” in Korea. That recognition, plus this year’s observation on July 27, have been too long coming.
Unfortunately many Korean War veterans did not live long enough to experience the recognition, but nonetheless their valour and sacrifice -- and that of their colleagues living today -- have finally been acknowledged. And the good news is that it will continue to be recognized for generations to come. That is a very good thing and long overdue.
