The government has designated a day on the lunar calendar as “Separated Families' Day” to recognize a memorial day unofficially observed by civic groups dedicated to helping members of war-torn families.

According to the unification ministry on Tuesday, the National Assembly passed revisions to a law on inter-Korean families on Monday formally placing the day of observance two days before the Korean thanksgiving holiday of Chuseok, which is August 13 this year.

With the revisions, the central and local governments will be authorized to hold ceremonies and promotional events related to families separated by the Korean War, which a ministry official said will hopefully raise public awareness about separated family issues.

Of some 133-thousand separated family members who have requested the government to be reunited with their long-lost kin in North Korea, only 31-point-nine percent are alive.