CreatripTeam

In August 1919, Syngman Rhee (이승만) announced the “Declaration of Continued Independence and Demands” as head of the Republic of Korea’s provisional government in exile and launched the Korean Commission (구미위원부) in Washington, D.C. The commission was a special diplomatic body established to represent a stateless nation abroad. Newly discovered original documents show Rhee and Korean Commission chair Kim Koo-sik (김규식) signed copies in English and French for foreign governments and the press. The declaration stressed that the future Korean state must be democratic and reject any return to autocracy or monarchic privilege, promising a constitution and laws based on democracy, justice, and equality. Shortly after, in September 1919, the unified Provisional Government in Shanghai confirmed Rhee as provisional president and recognized the Korean Commission as its official diplomatic mission.