Government-designated pro-Japanese collaborator (politics · press)
| Life | 1859 ~ 1935 |
| Era | 근현대 |
| Clan | 경주 최씨 |
Choe Yeong-nyeon (1859-1935) was a journalist in the late Korean Empire and early Japanese colonial period, and the father of novelist Choe Chan-sik, author of the popular new-style novel The Autumn Moon Colors. In his early career he took part in the Independence Club movement (1896-1898) and founded Siheung School in his hometown of Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, in 1897 to promote modern education.
After joining the pro-Japanese Iljinhoe in 1904, however, he helped issue the "Manifesto of Righteous Uprising" calling for suppression of the Righteous Army, served as chief editor and then president of the Iljinhoe's mouthpiece newspaper Gukmin Sinbo, and helped draft petitions urging Korea-Japan annexation. He later edited the magazine Joseon Munye (1917). For these activities he was officially designated a pro-Japanese collaborator by the South Korean government's Truth Commission. He also authored the folktale collection Silsachongdam (1918) and the poetry collection Haedong Jukji (1925).