S. Korean trade unions vow to go on general strike
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- Trade unions in South Korea are fighting against the lay-off of workers by the puppet clique and businesses, according to a radio report from Seoul.
The federation of metal industrial unions called a press conference on July 1 and declared that it would go on a general strike on the 14th, charging that the puppet "government" has violated an agreement with trade unions.
The organization declared that if the "government" refuses to keep the agreement it will launch a general strike in unity with the federation of financial trade unions and other industrial unions and to this end, stage overnight sit-ins for an indefinite period in Seoul and other areas from July 6. It also decided to ask the South Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) to negotiate with "Chongwadae".
Meanwhile, the Federation of Democratic Financial Trade Unions under KCTU and the National Federation of Financial Trade Unions under the federation of Korean trade unions warned that they will start a general strike on July 15 unless the authorities withdraw the lockout of banks which will bring about lay-off of workers.
Kang In Dok, enemy of reunification
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- The South Korean "Minister of National Unification", Kang In Dok, said that members of such "illegal organizations benefiting the enemy" as Hanchongryon (South Korean Federation of University Student Councils) may be allowed to participate in the August 15 grand reunification festival if they "withdraw" from their organizations.
He reportedly made this remark in a round-table conference of the ruling "National Congress for New Politics" on Thursday.
His utterances are an outrageous challenge not only to Hanchongryon but also to the entire South Koreans, desire for independence, democracy and reunification.
The ultra-rightist reactionaries of South Korea have been persistently blocking the participation of Hanchongryon and the south heaquarters of Pomminryon (National Alliance for the Country's Reunification) in an attempt to foil the north-proposed grand reunification festival to be held at Panmunjom around August 15. They are also raising "withdrawal" as condition, which will go down with nobody.
His disgusting remarks about "withdrawal" reveal once again his dirty colors as sworn enemy of reunification and as a thorough-paced separatist.
S. Korean authorities lambasted for obstructing reunification festival
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- Rodong Sinmun today accuses the South Korean authorities of characterizing the south headquarters of the National Alliance for the Country's Reunification (Pomminryon) and the South Korean Federation of University Student Councils (Hanchongryon) as "enemy-benefiting organizations" and banning their participation in the grand festival for national reconciliation, unity and reunification slated for August 15.
The ban is an anti-nation, anti-reunification act aimed at frustrating the festival, says the daily in a commentary.
Without the south headquarters of Pomminryon and Hanchongryon, the pro-reunification activities are unimaginable in South Korea, so their righteous, patriotic desire for the participation in the festival should be respected and realised, the daily says, and continues:
They should not be targets of suppression, nor should their desire for contributing to the accomplishment of the just, patriotic cause be trampled down.
If political parties, groups and people of various social sectors in South Korea ignore the fascist authorities' unreasonable ban or want to take part in the festival without the two organizations, they will only help the authorities attain their ulterior purpose.
U.S. urged to accept DPRK's proposal without delay
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- The U.S. authorities are vociferating about "importance of close cooperation" with someone in the Korean peninsula issue in a bid to inveigle other countries into the issue.
Rodong Sinmun in a commentary today describes it as a base plot to make the issue more complicated and interrupt its solution.
The analyst says:
It is the DPRK and the United States that are responsible for a solution to the issue in view of its occurrence and the prevailing situation. If a third party is inveigled into the issue, it will only make the issue more complex.
If the United States truly wants to settle the issue, it should not cry for "cooperation" with someone but accept the DPRK's proposal for building a new peace-keeping mechanism and take a practical step for the withdrawal of its troops from South Korea.
We regard independence as our life and soul and decide and settle all the matters according to our independent judgement and view.
If a new peace-keeping mechanism is built between the DPRK and the U.S. and the U.S. troops withdraw from South Korea, a decisive phase will be opened in the solution to the Korean peninsula issue.
The United States should accept our proposal without delay
Involvement in RIMPAC is wrong: Rodong Sinmun
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- Rodong Sinmun today comes out with a signed article titled "U.S. Korea strategy and 'RIMPAC'".
Saying that planned RIMPAC 98 joint military exercises are preparations of an adventurous "multinational" war mainly against the DPRK, the article calls for refraining from the reckless anti-DPRK war racket.
The author of the article says:
The unbiased public opinion calls for renouncing the planned RIMPAC, considering that it is mainly aimed at executing the Korea strategy and that this poses threats to peace and security in the Korean peninsula and Asia.
RIMPAC was a product of the Cold War and a lever to contain the Soviet Union.
As its major rival disappeared with the end of the Cold War, the United States directed the spearhead of its military strategy in Asia to the campaign to isolate and stifle the DPRK.
As correctly viewed by the public opinion at home and abroad, RIMPAC is an undisguised military challenge to the DPRK and a criminal act to bring clouds of war to the Asian region.
Accordingly, involvement of any country in the war game in any name and any form means serving the united states for its aggressive Korea and Asia strategies.
We will follow RIMPAC with sharpened vigilance and further consolidate our self-reliant national defence.
July 4 Joint Statement observed
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- Pyongyang-based papers today dedicate articles to the 26th anniversary of the publication of the July 4 Joint Statement whose keynote is the three principles of national reunification advanced by President Kim Il Sung.
26 years ago, the north and south of Korea in the July 4 Joint Statement, which was published in Pyongyang and Seoul simultaneously, solemnly declared that the three principles of independence, peaceful reunification and great national unity were a great reunification program common to the nation.
Considerable achievements have been made in the struggle to reunify the country on the three principles, but the issue of national reunification has not yet been settled entirely owing to the moves of the splittists at home and abroad, Rodong Sinmun says in a signed article, and goes on:
The concrete methods of our struggle for national reunification may change in accordance with the changing situation, but there can be no change in the basic principles of and stand toward the reunification of the country.
No matter how the situation and circumstances may change, the Korean people will keep to the three principles and carry them through to achieve national reunification.
All the Koreans in the north, south and abroad should rise up as one in the sacred, patriotic struggle to accelerate the independent and peaceful reunification of the country with concerted efforts of the nation in line with the five-point policy of great national unity put forward by General Kim Jong Il on the basis of the three principles.
The South Korean rulers must not go against the grand march for national reunification but break with their predecessors' past woven with flunkeyist, fascist, treacherous and anti-reunification crimes and make a policy switchover for the nation and reunification, thus showing their willingness for reunification.
Minju Joson in a signed article calls upon all the Koreans at home and abroad to wage a vigorous struggle to carry through the three principles of national reunification and stresses the need to make active preparations for a festival of grand national unity on the occasion of the 53rd anniversary of national liberation.
Popular policies
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- The Korean people have become an independent and dignified people who have fully enjoyed all the political rights and material and cultural life over the past 50 years thanks to the popular policies of the DPRK government.
The state, regarding it as the supreme principle of its activities to improve the wellbeing of the people, adopted in Juche 36 (1947), the first period of the building of a new country, the law on reform of the tax system in north Korea and a decision on giving scholarship to college and university students and improving the living standard of teachers of schools at all levels. In 1948 and 1949 it adopted decisions on drastically reducing prices of daily necessities and offering preferential treatment to the workers and technicians at ore and coal mines and in 1956 introduced the universal compulsory primary education system.
Decisions on regularly giving state subsidy to disabled soldiers and families of fallen soldiers and supporting war sufferers and introducing a universal free medical care system were also adopted during the Fatherland Liberation War (June 1950-july 1953).
In the postwar rehabilitation period, too, decisions on giving additional wage to workers, technicians and office employees and further strengthening medical assistance to working people were adopted, the universal compulsory secondary education system was enforced and a step for totally abolishing tuition taken.
The agricultural tax in kind was eliminated in the period from 1964 to 1966 and the tax system in 1974.
Therefore, Korea became the first tax-free country in the world.
Many decisions and laws including the law on upbringing of children, the public health law and the enforcement of the universal compulsory 11-year education system are the products of the consistent policies of the DPRK government sparing nothing for the people.
The DPRK government, which regards it as the basic mission to defend and realize the demand of the popular masses for indepencence and their interests, took a step some time ago for improving social and material treatment of the women with many children.
Kim Jong Il's nomination as SPA candidate welcomed
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- Manik Lal Shrestha, Chairman of the Nepal-Korea Friendship Association, published a statement on June 30 congratulating General Kim Jong Il on his nomination as candidate for the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly.
The statement said Kim Jong Il's nomination met the unanimous desire not only of the Korean people but also of the world's progressives.
It also said a sure guarantee has been provided for the independent and peaceful reunification of Korea and for the final victory of the Juche cause as Kim Jong Il is leading the struggle of the Korean people for accomplishing the cause of Juche pioneered by President Kim Il Sung.
This gives great strength and courage to the world's people fighting for independence and justice, it added.
Minju Joson flails false propaganda in S. Korea
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- The South Korean puppets are spreading rumours that the position of some Asian nations is veering round to "support for the presence of the U.S. troops in Asia."
Commenting on their crafty artifice, a news analyst of Minju Joson today says:
There should be no country which "supports the U.S. troops' presence in South Korea."
During the June 25-July 27 month of international solidarity with the Korean people, voices calling for the withdrawal of the U.S. imperialist aggression forces from South Korea have become louder and, moreover, calls for the U.S. troops' pullback are being made in even the United States and Japan.
Irritated by this trend of the times, the South Korean puppets are spreading rumours in a bid to justify their call for the permanent presence of the U.S. troops in South Korea.
However, the false propaganda only reveals the flunkeyist and treacherous nature of the South Korean puppets who eke out their living with help of outsiders while turning their back on the nation.
The South Korean puppets would be well advised to stop the false propaganda and discard the anti-national and humiliating policy of dependence upon outside forces.
Efforts for national reunification
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- Ro Yong Jin, Chairman of the United Confederation of Koreans in Moscow, published a statement on June 30, five days after the beginning of the month of international solidarity with the Korean people.
In the statement he said the United States and the South Korean puppet clique should carefully approach the DPRK's peace proposal and well-intentioned steps based on generosity, get the U.S. troops withdrawn from South Korea and remove all the obstacles to the reunification of the north and the south of Korea such as the concrete wall, the "Agency for National Security Planning" and "National Security Law" at an early date.
The statement said:
The confederation will actively join in the struggle for national reunification, upholding the five-point policy of great national unity advanced by General Kim Jong Il, and keep step with the homeland people in their heroic struggle.
DPRK team leaves for Moscow
Pyongyang, July 4 (KCNA) -- A DPRK team left here today by train to participate in the first world youth games which will be held in Moscow.