The gate of the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs is seen in this file photo provided by the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, Feb. 3. Yonhap

Three late Australian missionaries have been named independence activists of the month for their involvement in the movement against Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of Korea, the veterans ministry said Tuesday.

Margaret Sandeman Davies, Isabella Menzies and Daisy Hocking were selected for the ministry's monthly award for their role in the March 1 Independence Movement in 1919 — a watershed event during Japan's brutal occupation of the Korean Peninsula.

The three missionaries took part in the movement at Busanjin Ilsin Girls' School in Busan, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, providing the flagpoles necessary to make the Korean flag used by demonstrators.

They also led students taking part in demonstrations and protected them by burning the flags to destroy evidence, according to the ministry.

Vice Veterans Minister Lee Hee-wan was set to deliver plaques commemorating the three activists to Australian Ambassador to Korea Jeff Robinson in a ceremony in Seoul on Tuesday. (Yonhap)