PATENT BY INDEPENDENCE ACTIVIST

[Anchor Lead]

Few people know that the very first Korean national to receive a patent was an independence activist. It's none other than late Chung In-ho, who received a patent for inventing a horsehair hat and founded his own firm to provide financial support to the Korean provisional government in Shanghai.

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A horsehair hat, registered as Patent No. 133 with the Patent Bureau of the Residency-General of the Korean Empire founded by Japan in 1909, in order to gain complete control of Korea. The invention made headlines at the time, and its advertisements were published in local newspapers. The person who invented the horsehair hat was none other than independence fighter Chung In-ho. The patent acquired from Japanese authorities, was the first-ever patent earned by a Korean.

[Soundbite] CHUNG HWA-SUN(GREAT-GRANDDAUGHTER OF LATE CHUNG IN-HO) : "My father told me often about my great-grandfather's invention of a horsehair hat. But I didn't know it was the very first patented product. I was surprised and proud of my great-grandfather."

As Japan stepped up its aggression on Korea, Chung In-ho resigned from the post of Cheongdo-gun County governor and joined the independence movement. He wrote history textbooks for elementary schools and exported his patented product to Japan and China in order to raise funds for the Korean provisional government. Chung was imprisoned for five years and passed away in January 1945, just months before Korea's liberation from Japan.

[Soundbite] CHUNG HWA-SUN(GREAT-GRANDDAUGHTER OF LATE CHUNG IN-HO) : "My father always cried when speaking about that. He lamented it immensely."

In 1990, Chung In-ho's remains were buried at the Daejeon National Cemetery. He also received a posthumous order of merit for his patriotic deeds. The Korea Intellectual Property Office has attached a special sign to Chung's tombstone to honor him as the first Korean patent-holder and freedom fighter. With the trade row between Korea and Japan intensifying these days, the very first patent earned by a Korean holds a special meaning, as it helped lay a foundation for the country's independence.