SEOUL, 28 July 2016 ? A Filipino veteran who distinguished himself in battle in the Korean War was awarded South Korea’s highest military decoration for bravery and valor in ceremonies commemorating the 63rd anniversary of the signing of the 1953 Armistice Agreement held on Wednesday, 27 July 2016 at the Olympic Hall in Seoul’s Olympic Park.

Maj. Maximo Purisima Young was accorded the 1st Class of the Taegeuk Cordon of the Order of Military Merit for his “selfless sacrifice and outstanding services” in a citation signed by Korean President Park Geun-hye. Maj. Young, who was not fit to travel, was represented at the ceremonies by his son, Atty. Walter Young. Young was part of the 10th Battalion Combat Team (BCT) that arrived after a four-day journey at sea at Busan port on 19 September 1950, the first of five BCTs in the Philippine Expeditionary Force to Korea (PEFTOK) to serve in the Korean Peninsula until 1955. The Philippines was the first Asian country and the third UN member-state to send combat troops to the Korean War. On 11 November 1950, Young’s Armored Tank Division was pinned down in an ambush in their first armed encounter on foreign soil. He took the machine gun atop the tank and killed 42 members of the North’s Korean People’s Army, helping the 10th BCT defeat two enemy battalions in the Battle of Miudong (Miuri), the first battle won by the Philippines on foreign soil. Also present during the morning ceremonies was Mrs. Isabelita Yap-Aganon, daughter of Capt Conrado D. Yap, who was killed in action in the Battle of Yuldong in April 1951. Yap, a fellow member of the 10th BCT as Young, was posthumously awarded a Congressional Medal of Valor by the Philippine Government in 2006 for his heroic conduct. "First, I would like to express my utmost respect to our fallen heroes and the UN warriors, who selflessly sacrificed and dedicated everything to protect our freedom and peace," Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn told some 3,000 people, including war veterans, and diplomats from sending nations, at the ceremony that began at 10 a.m. He also stressed that the South Korean government will continue to work closely with the UN and the international community to counter North Korea's provocations. U.S. Forces Korea and United Nations Command (UNC) Commander Vincent Brooks said the agreement signed by the UNC, the Korean People's Army, and the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army on July 27, 1953 has prevented a reoccurrence of the three-year Korean War in the many events that happened 63 years hence. Ambassador Raul S. Hernandez of the Philippines, one of 16 countries that sent combat troops to fight under the UN flag, gave similar reassurances of camaraderie in a videotaped message: “The Philippines continues to stand with Korea as strong defenders of democracy, freedom, and the rule of law”. Other UN troops awarded medals by the South Korean government were Antonio Michael Muller, a former Air Force Chief of Staff of South Africa, who served as a combat plane pilot in the Korean War. Patrick Beaudouin from France was also recognized for his efforts to promote the honor of French Korean War veterans. Other awardees of the Taegeuk Cordon of the Order of Military Merit were U.S. Army Gen. William Westmoreland, who most notably commanded U.S. forces during the Vietnam War, and Col. Young-Oak Kim, a highly decorated U.S. Army combat veteran of World War II, who was awarded earlier this year the U.S.’ highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. ? END?