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The family of Ahn Eaktai, the composer of our national anthem, have said from Spain, where they live, that since they love Korea they will respect whatever decision the Korean people make regarding the copyright of the anthem. If the Korean people want the copyright, then it is theirs, the composer's heirs said.
While domestic controversy raged over royalties and whether or not to buy the rights, the family were looking at the matter from a loftier perspective: they are motivated by their love of the country. The rest of us should hang our heads in shame.
Under the copyright laws, Korea has been paying W5 million to W8 million in royalties to Ahn Eaktai's family for over a decade. This fact came to light only recently when the Culture and Tourism Ministry, in an attempt to eliminate possible illegality in the distribution of recordings of the national anthem tapes, asked the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs to buy the copyright.
It was then said that it is ridiculous to have to pay every time we sing the national anthem, and accusing fingers were pointed at both the government and the composer's heirs. On the usual Internet discussion boards, people demanded that the family renounce the copyright. Others called for a new national anthem. While paying royalties for your own national anthem may run counter to public sentiment, these demands ignored the international trend toward protection of intellectual property rights.
The composer's family have described Korea as their fatherland, and they spoke of their pride when they hear the national anthem song. How must they have felt when they read suggestions to replace the anthem from a country so dear to them? Had the government suggested a more positive approach a little sooner, such wounds to the bereaved family could have been prevented. Instead, when the Culture Ministry asked to buy the copyright three years ago, the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs turned it down out of concern over negative public opinion at the time.
"Our family sincerely wish that the people will see us as one of them," the family said. There are many things the government should and can do for this family of proud Koreans. For a start, the aborted Ahn Eaktai memorial hall, for which a Korean expatriate had donated Ahn's old home in Spain and for which the government had already set aside a budget, should be revived.
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