May folk festival: Tano

Pyongyang, May 29 (KCNA) -- Tano is a traditional Korean folk festival. It is the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. This year Tano falls on May 30. In olden times, the peasants held this festival while preparing weeding and other farmwork after sowing seeds. They had this holiday, enjoying beautiful scenery. Our ancestors celebrated the may festival from antiquity. Historically there was some difference in the festive events and contents. But it has been handed down as a traditional folk festival. The 18th century record "Three Periods of Korea" calls this day the "Suri Day" and explains its reason: "Tano is called the Suri day. Suri means cart wheel. On this day people pounded picked mugwort hard, mixed it with rice flour, pounded it again and made fresh green mugwort rice cake in the shape of cart wheel and ate it. Hence the Suri Day." People prepared and ate special foods, celebrating this festival. Popular festival foods were steamed rice cake, mugwort rice cake, cake flavoured with pine endodermis and fermented rice cake. Mugwort rice cake was an absolute must for the may festival. On this holiday people, men and women and young and old, wore silk gauze, fine gauze and other thin silk clothes, adding to festive atmosphere. Various joyful games were played on the festival. Swinging and wrestling were most popular and tug of war, somersault and mask dance were popular in some localities. Today, too, the Korean people observe this traditional festival.

Solidarity messages to Kim Jong Il from foreign party leaders

Pyongyang, May 29 (KCNA) - General Secretary Kim Jong Il received solidarity messages sent by O. Shenin, Chairman of the Council of the Union of Communist Parties-the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and Branko Kitanovic, General Secretary of the New Yugoslav Communist Party, in support of his historic letter "Let Us Reunify the Country Independently and Peacefully Through the Great Unity of the Entire Nation". O. Shenin said that the proposal advanced by Kim Jong Il is good one that helps carry out the behests of President Kim Il Sung and fully reflects the requirement of the present struggle for the independent and peaceful reunification of Korea. Branko Kitanovic said that the five-point policy of great national unity is the most realistic and reasonable political charter that indicates a short cut for achieving the vital interests of the Korean nation and peace and security. He wished the Korean people fresh success in their efforts for implementing the policy.

Immediate fighting slogans published by NDFSK

Pyongyang, May 29 (KCNA) -- The Worker-Peasant Department of the central committee of the National Democratic Front of South Korea (NDFSK) made public immediate fighting slogans on May 22, the Seoul-based radio voice of national salvation reported. The slogans said that the South Korean workers are resolutely fighting, unable to pardon the anti-worker policy of the present regime. The realities in South Korea require 10 million workers to unite and wage an uncompromising struggle, the slogans noted, and continued: Let us repulse the fascist violence against the labour movement Is the regime, which deprives workers of their means of living, a "government for the people"? Put off its mask how can it lay off workers without taking a relief measure against unemployment? The present regime, which drives workers into streets, must resign if we obey, we will die but if we fight, we will survive. Let us fight for our living unity leads to victory. 10 million workers, demonstrate the might of unity Let us tighten worker-student solidarity and realise worker-peasant solidarity

Rodong Sinmun condemns U.S. military exercises

Pyongyang, May 29 (KCNA) -- Recently, Japan-based U.S. fighters staged a training of flying to and deploying in a military base in South Korea and the Okinawa-based U.S. marine corps carried out a joint drill. The fighters and marine corps are a task force serving for the execution of the U.S. Korea and Asia military strategy. Rodong Sinmun today berates the U.S. warmongers for frequently staging reckless war exercises for a forestalling attack on the DPRK with such means of war. It is the keypoint of the U.S. policy of strength towards Asia to start the second Korean War with the U.S. troops present in South Korea and Japan as the main force and dominate the whole of Korea, the daily says in a commentary, and continues: We associate the military exercises of the United States with its noncompliance with the framework agreement with the DPRK. The United States is playing hide-and-seek as regards the agreement. It has persistently sought to stifle the DPRK by military force, while breaking its promise. We will as ever increase the country's defence capacity, constantly attaching importance to the military affairs, and keep oursevles fully prepared to smash the enemy's surprising invasion. The United States must discard the unattainable desire.

KCTU's general strike continues in S. Korea

Pyongyang, May 29 (KCNA) -- The (south) Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) continued its general strike on May 28, too, according to a radio report from Seoul. It held a rally at the Jongmyo park in Seoul in the afternoon with the participation of strikers and announced that through meetings for general strike in many parts, it would urge the regime to accept its demands including the abrogation of the lay-off system and labour exchange system. It said that if the regime fails to sincerely accede to demands of strikers, it would hold rallies simultaneously in all parts of South Korea on May 30 and June 3 and enter into an allout general strike on June 10. On the same day, the trade unions of four enterprises in Ulsan including the Hyun Dai Motor Company and Hyun Dai Precision Ind. Co., ltd. Held a large-scale rally on the Thaehwa River of Ulsan with the attendance of some 20,000 unionists under the Ulsan branch of the KCTU. Some 20 members of the leadership of the KCTU including its chairman started a sit-in at the Myongdong cathedral in Seoul on the night of May 27.

Japan's ambition can never be satisfied

Pyongyang, May 29 (KCNA) -- Minju Joson today accuses the Japanese government of scheming to expand the scope of the "Japan-U.S. Defense Cooperation Guidelines" in extensive areas of Asia under the pretext of the Indonesian situation. In a commentary the daily says the Japanese reactionaries are materializing the adventurous ambition for overseas expansion, hoping to dominate Asia and become the leader of the continent. It further says: Their efforts to escalate the overseas advance of the Japanese "self-defense forces" and expand the scope of the "defense cooperation guidelines" under this or that pretext are a crafty trick to slacken worldwide vigilance against them, make their criminal preparations of aggression a fait accompli and legalize them. But their moves cannot work now. No matter how desperately they may try, they can never dominate Asia. If they continue trying for overseas expansion, they will have nothing to get but ruin. The Japanese government must clearly see the trend of the time and give up the adventurous design of overseas expansion.

Mankind loves Kimjongilia

Pyongyang, May 29 (KCNA) -- The immortal flower Kimjongilia created a great stir among the participants in an inaugural meeting of the society of lovers of Kimjongilia of Japan. Shuhachi Inoue, Director General of the International Institute of the Juche Idea, said that Kimjongilia is a flower most loved by mankind and the flower will remain in full bloom forever. Takeshi Takeuchi, Chairman of the society who is former member of the House of Representatives, said that visiting the Kimjongilia exhibition held in Pyongyang twice, he could know General Kim Jong Il is a prominent, great man praised by all people. Prof. Kiyoshi Naoi of Teiko University of Japan vowed to devote his all to widely introducing the immortal flower. A botanist, Mototeru Kamo, emphasized that Kimjongilia, named after a great man of the century, will always remain the best flower in the world.