HIGHEST RESPECT TO KIM IL SUNG

Visitors to the Democratic Peoples’ Republic of Korea can often see the sight of the Korean people who present bouquets of flowers and make a deep bow to the statue of President Kim Il Sung(1912-1994) standing on Mansu Hill in the central part of Pyongyang, the capital of the DPRK.

A token of the highest respect to the President constitutes part of the Korean people’s life.

This can be observed in other aspects, as well. In Pyongyang there is the Kumsusan Memorial Palace where the President Kim Il Sung lies in state. The palace had originally been called the Kumsusan Assembly Hall, his official residence.

It is a convention that when the head of state in any country died or resigned his post, his official residence as well as his public position are handed over to his successor.

Leader Kim Jong Il, however, had a firm determination to keep his predecessor in his lifetime appearance at the Kumsusan Assembly Hall.

According to his intention, the Kumsusan Assembly Hall was renovated into the Kumsusan Memorial Palace, the supreme temple of Juche where the President is kept in his lifetime appearance.

The newly renovated Kumsusan Memorial Palace is a manifestation of the highest tribute which Kim Jong Il and the Korean people pay to President Kim Il Sung.

In the DPR Korea, the Juche era was instituted with 1912 as the first year when Kim Il Sung was born, the Day of the Sun was designated to immortalize April 15, the President’s birthday, the socialist constitution was amended and supplemented to codify that Kim Il Sung is the eternal President of the DPRK, and a series of undertakings have been carried forward to implement his ideology and cause to the last. All these undertakings are run through with the lofty tribute to him.

The Korean leader starts his work of every New Year by visiting the Kumsusan Memorial Palace and making a bow to him in humble reverence.

The journey of his continuous field guidance to the army and people is replete with the highest respect to his predecessor. He first looks round the monument to the President’s revolutionary activities wherever he goes.

It was on April 15, 1997 when Kim Jong Il visited a unit of the Korean People’s Army.

Saying that he failed to pay his respect to the President at the Kumsuan Memorial Palace because he was spending the Day of the Sun on the road of field guidance, he raised his hand in salute together with the accompanying officials in front of a monument to the President’s revolutionary activities erected on the spot.

Thanks to his unshakable will to inherit and glorify the priceless exploits performed by the President in his lifetime, Korea won victory in the grim struggle to defend socialism in the closing years of the last century, and has achieved miraculous successes in the building of a great, prosperous and powerful socialist nation during the first decade of the new century.

The building of thriving nation in Korea, which is now drawing attention of international community, is a vivid manifestation of loyalty to the President’s ideology and cause.

It was the President’s greatest wish to enable his people to lead a happy life with no envy in the world. The Korean leader, who has unfolded a grand plan of building a thriving nation to carry forward the President’s ideal with credit, is steering the all-out campaign for its implementation.

His continuous inspection tours to the units throughout the country have made it possible to achieve one miraculous success after another in breaking through the cutting edge and attaining the high goal of building a thriving nation.

Tow artificial satellites were successfully launched, CNC technology has been introduced into many factories, crop fields across the country were rezoned into large-sized, standardized fields, large-sized hydroelectric power stations, including the Huichon Power Station, are being built at a rapid speed.

Of late, a large-scale sturgeon-farming system has been established, and its farming in the sea succeeded, thus startling the world once again.

The leadership of Kim Jong Il over the building of a thriving is run through with the effort to perfectly realize the President’s lifetime desires and ideals.

For the success in establishing the Juche-oriented steel-making method, one of the President’s lifetime wish, Kim Jong Il visited the Songjin Steel Complex, Kim Chaek Iron and Steel Complex and other iron and steel manufacturers across the country on many an occasion, and ensured that a new type of steel-making system which does not rely on coke and scrap iron was established at long last.

Vinalon cotton cascading down in Korea is permeated with the lofty respect of the successor to the President.

The President devoted his heart and soul to vinalon production so as to solve the problem of the people’s clothing. After an interval of 16 years vinalon began to be mass-produced once again.

On seeing vinalon cotton, he felt it again and again with his hands and went to Pyongyang, to the Kumsusan Memorial Palace with the cotton in his car, saying that he had to present it to the President so that the latter could see it. The Korean people’s hearts are now running toward 2012.

It is their firm determination to open the gates of a great, prosperous and powerful nation by 2012, the 100^th anniversary of President Kim Il Sung’s birth.

Kim Il Sung will be eternally enjoying the boundless respect of the Korean people.

Invariable Banner for Korea’s Reunification

Eleven years have already passed since the June 15 North-South Joint Declaration, a milestone for Korea’s reunification, was made public.

Notwithstanding the elapse of the years, the basic ideal of the declaration, By Our Nation Itself, still remains as an invariable banner of Korea’s reunification.

Spirit of National Independence

The ideal of By Our Nation Itself constitutes an invariable banner for Korea’s reunification because first it is run through with the thoroughgoing spirit of national independence.

The division of Korea was caused not only by any contradiction within the Korean nation but by the foreign forces.

The US that occupied south Korea immediately after the Second World War has pursued permanent stationing of its troops in south Korea with an ambition to seize supremacy in the whole of Korea and the Asian continent. This is why even today, when the Cold War was terminated and the Berlin Walls was pulled down, concrete walls still run across the middle of the Korean peninsula and serious obstacles remain in the way of Korea’s reunification.

The 60-odd-year history of Korea’s division shows that unless an end was put to the domination and intervention by foreign forces, independent development and reunification of the entire Korean nation can never be achieved.

Reunification of Korea is a matter that must be settled by the Korean nation itself by means of its own efforts and in conformity to its own opinion and interest, in other words, a matter related with the nation’s right to self domination. There cannot be any reason or pretext for foreign forces to poke their nose into the matter. Hence the ideal of By Our Nation Itself.

The principle of national independence expressed in such plain words as By Our Nation Itself cannot be but most reasonable and just in view of the matter of Korea’s reunification, which is of relinking the severed veins of the blood of the nation, and of the universal ideal of humanity, who aspire after ending the domination and intervention of the foreign countries and achieving independent development.

Spirit of Great National Unity

The ideal of By Our Nation Itself continues an invariable banner for Korea’s reunification because second it reflects the spirit of great national unity, a prerequisite and basic method of the peninsula’s reunification.

The eye-opening reality witnessed in the Korean peninsula after the adoption of the declaration testifies to the fact that reunification is quite possible if the entire Korean nation achieves unity.

As the roads and railways, which had been severed, were relinked and routes on air and sea were opened, a large breakthrough was made in the barrier dividing the peninsular. High-level inter-Korean political and military talks were held along with 20 rounds of minister-level talks, which discussed and agreed on the problems of the Korean nation.

In Kaesong, a city which is situated on the Military Demarcation Line and so had symbolized national division, there was established an industrial park, a symbol of economic collaboration and exchanges between the north and south of Korea. Mt. Kumgang, a world-famous mountain in the north of Korea, was opened to people in the south for tourism.

Reunion of separated families and their relatives in the north and south took place many times. Sportspersons of the north and south entered the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympic Games and many other international sports games together hand in hand-these scenes moved the whole world. The world realized keenly that the north and south of Korea are a nation with one language, one blood and one culture and they must be reunified without fail.

The fact that the north and south of Korea, which had been at odds for over half a century, could demonstrate such a great national unity was a fruit of the ideal of By Our Nation Itself.

In the course of applying invariably the spirit of great national unity by the north and south of Korea, reunification of the Korean peninsula will surely achieved.

Spirit of Peace

The ideal of By Our Nation Itself constitutes an invariable banner for Korea’s reunification because third it is the fundamental guarantee for peace in the Korean peninsula.

The Korea peninsula is one of the hotspot in the world. Peace and security of the world is now dependant on the developments in this peninsula.

As the south Korean authorities are proactive in joining the persistent US policy of stifling the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and threatening it military, the situation in the region around the peninsula is being aggravated to the extreme. Last year the situation was brought to the brink of war by the incidents of sinking of the Cheonan and shelling on Yonphyong Island.

Had the south Korean authorities not kowtowed to the US, which is hell-bent on doing harm to their compatriots, and had they not allowed their territory, airspace and seawaters to be used as venues of the US war games by rejecting joint manoeuvres, in other words, had they respected the ideal of By Our Nation Itself, then the situation in the Korean peninsula would not have been driven to such a critical point.

The June 15 Declaration is irrefutably a joint declaration between north and south of Korea. The south Korean authorities can never fell free from the declaration before the entire Korean nation and the world.

Peace and security of the Korean peninsular will lead to peace and security of the world. If a war breaks out in the Korean peninsula, it will inevitably develop into a thermonuclear war, which mankind has never experienced until now, and involve a wide area of the world as well as the Korean peninsula and Northeast Asia. Loss and damage caused by it would be beyond human imagination. It may entail the end of the world, as Fidel Castro said.

The international community wish that the north and south of Korea would remain faithful to the last to the ideal of By Our Nation Itself, the basic ideal of the June 15 Joint Declaration.

For realizing the reunification of the Korean peninsula, there is no other way that to implement the declaration.

Visit to the People's Republic of China

- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and chairman of the DPRK National Defence Commission (NDC), paid an unofficial visit to the People's Republic of China (PRC) from May 20 to 26 at the invitation of Hu Jintao, general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and president of the PRC.

He was accompanied by Kim Ki Nam and Choe Thae Bok, members of the Political Bureau and secretaries of the C.C., the WPK; Kang Sok Ju, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and vice-premier of the Cabinet; Jang Song Thaek, alternate member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and vice-chairman of the NDC; Kim Yong Il, Pak To Chun and Thae Jong Su, alternate members of the Political Bureau and secretaries of the C.C., the WPK; Mun Kyong Tok, alternate member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the C.C., the WPK and chief secretary of the Pyongyang City Committee of the WPK; Ju Kyu Chang, alternate member of the Political Bureau and department director of the C.C., the WPK; Kim Kye Gwan, first vice-minister of Foreign Affairs; and Ji Jae Ryong, DPRK ambassador e. p. to China.

Chinese party and state leaders warmly welcomed Kim Jong Il who visited China again for strengthening and developing the DPRK-China friendship sealed in blood and accorded him cordial hospitality with utmost sincerity.

Kim Jong Il separately met and had talks with Hu Jintao, and Wen Jiabao, Jia Qinglin, Li Changchun, Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, He Guoqiang and Zhou Yongkang, who are members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the CPC.

Upon his arrival at Beijing Kim Jong Il was greeted by Jia Qinglin, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the CPC and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference; Liu Qi, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., and secretary of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the CPC; and leading officials of national organizations and Beijing Municipality.

He received a bunch of fragrant flowers from a child.

He had a conversation with Jia Qinglin.

Jia Qinglin warmly welcomed Kim Jong Il's visit to China on behalf of the CPC, the government of the PRC and the Chinese people upon the authorization of General Secretary Hu Jintao.

He noted that Hu Jintao and leading officials of the collective leadership were looking forward to the meeting with Kim Jong Il, attaching utmost importance to his China visit.

Kim Jong Il cordially met with Hu Jintao in Beijing on May 25 and held talks with him.

Present at the talks from the Chinese side were Xi Jinping, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the CPC and vice-president of the PRC; Ling Jihua, member of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the CPC and director of the General Office of the C.C., the CPC; Dai Bingguo, state councilor; Wang Jiarui, head of the International Liaison Department of the C.C., the CPC; Yang Jiechi, minister of Foreign Affairs; Zhang Ping, head of the National Development and Reform Committee; Chen Deming, minister of Commerce; Liu Jieyi, deputy head of the International Liaison Department of the C.C., the CPC; and Liu Hongcai, Chinese ambassador e. p. to the DPRK.

Present there were Kang Sok Ju, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and vice-premier of the DPRK Cabinet; Kim Yong Il, alternate member and secretary of the C.C., the WPK; and Kim Kye Gwan, first vice-minister of Foreign Affairs.

Kim Jong Il's visit to China is of particularly weighty importance in developing the traditional friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries on a higher stage, Hu Jintao noted, warmly welcoming his visit to China on behalf of the Chinese party, government and people.

He extended kind greetings to all the Korean people in their dynamic drive to open the gate to a thriving nation in 2012, the centenary of birth of President Kim Il Sung, in hearty response to the spirit of the historic conference of the WPK.

Noting that the China visit paid by Kim Jong Il nine months after his two visits to China last year clearly proves what great importance he is attaching to the traditional Sino-DPRK friendship provided by the leaders of the elder generation of the two countries, Hu Jintao highly appreciated the devoted service rendered by Kim Jong Il for the steady development of the bilateral friendship. Hu Jintao stressed that Kim Jong Il's appraisal of the changes taking place in China, making a long trip to the Northeastern and Huadong regions of China, was boundless encouragement and full support to the struggle of the Chinese people.

Kim Jong Il said that he was pleased to meet Hu Jintao again and expressed deep thanks to him for having sent senior officials in the capital as far as the railway station on the border to warmly receive and accord him cordial hospitality during his visit. He extended warm congratulations to all the members of the CPC and people of China on the 90th anniversary of the party.

Kim Jong Il gave his impressions of the visit to the Northeastern and Huadong regions of China making steady progress full of dynamism.

Kim Jong Il said that during his visit he could witness for himself the dynamic progress in the rapidly changing land of China through the achievements made in the economic and cultural fields and in the domain of the cutting-edge science and technology in its vast land.

The top leaders of the two parties and countries informed each other of the situation in their countries and had an open-hearted exchange of views on boosting the relations between the two parties and countries and reached a full consensus of views in a comradely, sincere and friendly atmosphere.

They shared the view that it is the common sacred responsibility which no others can perform instead and steadfast stand to carry forward and develop down through generations the DPRK-China friendly and cooperative relations which have covered the 60 odd year-long proud and historic path and have been put on a new higher stage.

They recognized that according to the agreement the leaders of the two parties and countries reached after their meeting in Changchun last year the governments and peoples of the two countries have striven to put the issues into practice in various fields.

It is favorable for more dynamically pushing forward socialist construction in the two countries, better protecting and promoting the common interests of the two sides and regional peace, stability and prosperity to boost the bilateral relations in various fields including high-level visits, brisk exchange of human culture and expansion of experience swap and mutually beneficial cooperation, they said, and discussed a series of measures to this end and reached an agreement.

It is the requirement of a new period and new situation to strengthen the unity between the two parties and countries and advance the bilateral friendly and cooperative relations with the era, Hu Jintao said, noting that the CPC and the PRC government will creditably discharge the historic responsibility for steadfastly carrying forward the baton of the traditional Sino-DPRK friendship associated with the noble soul of the revolutionaries of the elder generation of the two countries.

The Chinese side is set to inject fresh life and viability into the Sino-DPRK friendship and promote and put spurs to the development of the Sino-DPRK good neighborly relations of friendship and cooperation and boost them in wider dimension by pooling efforts with the DPRK side and thus bring greater wellbeing to the two countries and peoples and make a greater contribution to peace, stability and prosperity in Northeast Asia and, furthermore, in the rest of the world, Hu Jintao noted.

The DPRK-China friendship with a long history and tradition with the two countries linked by the same mountain and rivers is unbreakable as it stood all storms and tests and it will remain evergreen no matter how much water may flow under the bridge and how frequently one generation is replaced by another, Kim Jong Il said, re-clarifying the invariable will and determination of the WPK and the DPRK government to boost the friendly and cooperative relations in conformity with the noble intention of the leaders of the elder generation of the two countries and the desire of the two peoples.

Kim Jong Il expressed thanks to the party and government of China for having consistently set store by the DPRK-China friendship in the light of the strategic importance and from a prospective angle and having positively supported the Korean people in their struggle to defend socialism and achieve the prosperity of the country.

He reiterated the will to exert every possible effort for further consolidating the bonds of fraternal friendship enshrined in the minds of the two peoples and dynamically boosting the bilateral friendship, the common treasure of the two countries, in various fields.

Appreciating the new successes being made by the Chinese people in the efforts to accomplish the cause of building socialism with Chinese characteristics, he said that the Korean people are rejoiced as over their own success over the fact that everything is going well in China, their neighbor.

At the talks the two sides highly estimated the fact that the good-neighborliness, friendship and cooperation between the two countries grew stronger after a series of historic meetings held between the top leaders of the DPRK and China in recent years and expressed mutual support and solidarity with the two parties and peoples in the struggle for socialist construction and national reunification.

Hu Jintao highly appreciated the positive measures taken by the DPRK to defend stability and peace, develop economy and improve the standard of people's living, wishing the Korean people greater success in socialist construction under the wise leadership of the WPK led by Kim Jong Il.

He supported the Party, government and people of the DPRK firmly preserving socialism and exploring the road of development suited to its reality, expressing belief that the whole Party, the country and the people would achieve shining successes through a dynamic struggle, single-mindedly united around Kim Jong Il.

Kim Jong Il expressed expectation that the Chinese people would win steady new victories in the historical course of furthering the building of the party's ability to govern, realizing scientific outlook on development and building a harmonious society under the guidance of the CPC with Hu Jintao as its general secretary, wishing them signal achievements this year, the first year of the 12th five-year plan.

Both sides had a sincere and in-depth exchange of views on international and regional issues of mutual concern, the situation in Northeast Asia, in particular.

Recognizing that the adherence to the goal of denuclearization on the whole Korean Peninsula, peaceful settlement of the issue through dialogue including the resumption of the six-party talks and the elimination of obstructive elements conform to the overall interests of Northeast Asia, the two sides shared views on making good understanding and coordination.

Hu Jintao hosted a banquet in welcome of Kim Jong Il's China visit at the Great Hall of the People on Wednesday evening.

Present there on invitation were Kim Ki Nam, Choe Thae Bok, Kang Sok Ju, Jang Song Thaek, Kim Yong Il, Pak To Chun, Thae Jong Su, Mun Kyong Dok, Ju Kyu Chang, Kim Kye Gwan, Ji Jae Ryong and embassy officials.

Present there were senior Chinese party and state cadres including Li Changchun, Xi Jinping, He Guoqiang, Zhou Yongkang, Liu Qi, Guo Boxiong, Ling Jihua, Wang Huning, Dai Bingguo, Wang Jiarui, Yang Jiechi, Zhang Ping and Chen Deming and Liu Hongcai.

Speeches were made by Hu Jintao and Kim Jong Il at the banquet.

The banquet proceeded in amicable atmosphere full of comradely and friendly feelings.

An art performance specially prepared by Chinese artistes was given to welcome Kim Jong Il's visit to China.

The colorful performance given by famous national art groups and domestic and international concours winners included numbers such as Chinese songs "My Motherland", serial songs of "A Dream of Red Mansions", world famous music and Korean songs "Nostalgia" and "Blooming Worksite".

Kim Jong Il conveyed a floral basket in congratulation of the successful performance.

He exchanged warm farewell with the leading officials of the collective leadership of China including Hu Jintao and Xi Jinping.

Hoping to meet Kim Jong Il again, Hu Jintao wished him greater success in his important work for realizing the cause of building a rich and powerful nation.

Kim Jong Il met with Premier of the State Council Wen Jiabao and had a cordial conversation with him at the state guest house on May 25.

Wen said he was very much pleased to see again Kim Jong Il in good health, adding that the current tour made by Kim Jong Il was the same as the one done by President Kim Il Sung 20 years ago.

Kim Jong Il said that this visit was the seventh one in the new century, noting that the Chinese party, government and people showed him cordial hospitality every time he came.

He conveyed militant greetings of the C.C., the WPK and the NDC of the DPRK to the Chinese party, government and people.

On May 26 he visited the Shenzhou Digital Company on the outskirts of Beijing, accompanied by Li Keqiang.

After going round the company, he highly appreciated a lot of successes of the scientists and researchers in researches into cutting-edge science.

He said that both the DPRK and China need to learn from each other and exchange experience in many aspects and heartily wished the Chinese people fresh and greater achievements in the great work for building a comprehensively well-off society in the spirit of the 17th Congress of the CPC.

Li Keqiang gave a luncheon for Kim Jong Il.

Jia Qinglin, Liu Qi and other senior officials of China were present at Beijing Railway Station to see off Kim Jong Il returning home.

He successfully concluded his unofficial visit to the PRC and started on his way home in safety, receiving warm farewell from senior party and government officials of China including Dai Bingguo and Wang Jiarui who accompanied and guided him with sincerity in the whole period of the visit.

His current visit to China for steady development of the DPRK-China friendship was successfully conducted under the special care and cordial hospitality of Hu Jintao and the party and government of China.

Kim Jong Il was satisfied at the results of the visit and expressed his heartfelt thanks for the cordial hospitality accorded to him by Chinese senior party and