Greetings to Iranian President
Pyongyang, March 22 (KCNA) -- Kim Yong Nam, President of the presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly of the DPRK, sent a message of greetings to Iranian President Seyed Mohammad Khatami on March 21 on the occasion of Iran's New Year. The message expressed the belief that the friendly and cooperative relations between the DPRK and Iran will further expand and strengthen in different domains in the New Year. It wished the Iranian President and people greater successes in the work for the prosperity of their country and him good health and happiness.
Greetings to Pakistani President
Pyongyang, March 22 (KCNA -- Kim Yong Nam, President of the presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly of the DPRK, sent a message of greetings to Pakistani President Muhammad Rafiq Tarar on Mar. 21 on the occasion of the Day of Pakistan. In the belief that the friendly and cooperative relations between the DPRK and Pakistan will continue to develop on good terms in conformity with the two peoples' interests, the message wished the Pakistani President and people greater successes in the struggle for the independent development of their country.
Message of greetings to LAS secretary general
Pyongyang, March 22 (KCNA) -- DPRK Foreign Minister Paek Nam Sun sent a message of greetings to secretary general of the League of Arab States Ahmed Esmat Abdul Maguid on the occasion of its 54th foundation anniversary. The message said that the foundation of the LAS was an important event of great significance in the history of Arab nations. It expressed the belief that the good relations of friendship and cooperation existing between the DPRK and Arab countries would further strengthen and develop and wished the secretary general greater success in his responsible work.
S. Korea's scheme to intensify drills of reserve forces
Pyongyang, March 22 (KCNA) -- The South Korean authorities plan to stage military drills of reserve forces with the mobilization of more inhabitants, said a Seoul-based radio. According to the plan, 40% of over 460,000 reservists of over 90 occupational categories who have been excluded from training of reserve forces will be hurled again into military exercises which will begin next year. Among them are drill teachers of high schools, itinerant lecturers on family planning and locomotive engineers and other employees. This proves that the South Korean rulers are further reinforcing manpower as well as lethal equipment in an attempt to round off preparations for a war against the north.
Violations of human rights denounced
Tokyo, March 20 (KNS-KCNA) -- A press conference was held in Japan on March 17 in regard to the submission of applications for the abjuration of Japanese nationality to local administrative organs by Japan-resident Koreans who acquired the DPRK nationality last year. Members of defence counsel group in their remarks pointed out it was encroachment upon the DPRK's sovereignty and human rights of the Koreans in Japan that the Japanese authorities turned down their applications for the abjuration of the Japanese nationality, asserting that Japan cannot recognize the DPRK.
They said that the issue of recognizing a state was different from that of nationality in view of international usage and demanded that the Japanese authorities observe international laws and treaties. They stated that they would wage brisk activities against the discriminatory policy of the Japanese authorities so that legitimate demands of Korean residents in Japan, the overseas citizens of a sovereign state, could be met. Prior to the press conference, the defence counsel group offered the human rights protection committee of the Japan federation of bar associations a request for accepting Japan-resident Koreans' applications for the abjuration of the Japanese nationality.
DPRK's persevering efforts to build powerful nation
Pyongyang, March 22 (KCNA) -- Korea is making persevering efforts to keep production going, put its overall economy on its orbit and stabilize and improve the standards of people's living. The abnormal production performance in the economic field and the people's unstable living are attributable to the imperialist's machinations and the severe natural calamities that have hit the country for the last several consecutive years. The imperialist have resorted to every conceivable move to isolate and stifle socialist Korea since the revival of capitalism in the erstwhile socialist countries early in the 90s.
This proved no small impediment to the economic development of the country adversely affected by the breakdown of the socialist market. On top of this, severe flood, drought, tidal wave and typhoon, and so on. That have struck the country for the last several consecutive years either rendered lots of industrial installations and equipment submerged or damaged. The shortage of power, raw and other materials and equipment has hit hard the national economy as a whole and made it impossible for the state to service the people' daily needs for consumer goods.
Hardest hit by this was agriculture. Last year alone, farming failed in tens of thousands of hectares of the cultivated land and the grain production shrank by half or even more in the country's granaries as compared with normal years. The food situation this year still remains very difficult. The DPRK is trying to solve this food problem with a variety of food substitutes. It is persevering in its efforts to build a prosperous and powerful nation in near future.
A number of problems have found a successful solution to make their prospect bright. The industrialization of the method of making iron by blowing oxygen in February in the wake of putting into orbit the country's first satellite "Kwangmyongsong 1" last August to rank itself among the satellite have went a long way toward increasing the Juche character and independence of the metal industry. The production of an electron microscope of 300,000 magnifications gave a momentum to the researches in the field of up-to-date science.
There is a good prospect for the solution of the food problem, too. The DPRK has a favorable condition and environment for increased diverse economic exchange, joint development and collaboration with many other countries. Multi-faceted international cooperation is given to the DPRK in the promising joint exploration of oil and other rich resources. All this provides a sure guarantee for building a powerful nation.
Ill-intentioned move against DPRK
Pyongyang, March 22 (KCNA) -- The South Korean authorities are busy with their moves to slander the DPRK at the 55th session of the UN commission on human rights due in Geneva on March 22. The South Korean authorities are talking about the dispatch of their "Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade" to the session to clarify their position on the issues of "repatriation of south side's POWs" and "re-union of divided family members." the DPRK cannot overlook this ridiculous move. Their move stems from a silly attempt to improve their image by raising the issues in line with the so-called "sunshine policy" peddled by the present chief executive and take an upper hand in the confrontation with the north over human rights.
The issue of the "repatriation of the south side's POWs" the South Korean authorities are going to raise at the forthcoming UN human rights session is no more than a fiction they invented in order to accuse the north of "human rights violation." There is now not a single South Korean taken prisoner in the north. In the north there are only those who defected to the north, refusing to serve in the disgraceful army and are enjoying a happy life on the work sites they chose by themselves according to their wishes.
As far as the issue of "re-union of divided family members" is concerned, the South Korean ruling quarters are not entitled to say anything. Guided by the idea of great national unity and proceeding from the compatriotic stand, the Workers' Party and the government of Korea have always considered the issue to be a principled matter related to national reunification and made sincere efforts to solve it. Therefore, the responsibility for the failure to settle it rests entirely with the south side.
Nevertheless, the South Korean authorities, not content with making a fuss over the issues at home, are trying to take the issues to the UN Arena. It cannot be construed otherwise than a crafty move to divert elsewhere the world's public criticism of South Korea, a wasteland of human rights, and build up a world opinion by making the north's "human rights issue" a fait accompli in a bid to tarnish the DPRK image.
Chongryon calls for massive patriotic movement
Tokyo, March 20 (KNS-KCNA) -- The 2nd meeting of the 18th central committee of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon), which was held in Tokyo on March 20, discussed the item "On consolidating mass foundations of Chongryon and conducting all-compatriots' patriotic movement this year to suit new circumstances." The meeting was addressed by chairman Han Tok Su of the central standing committee of Chongryon.
So Man Sul, first vice-chairman of the Chongryon central standing committee, in his report said that the tasks to be carried out in the compatriotic mass movement are to undertake a dynamic broad-based movement to defend the national identity among the compatriots in Japan with main stress on national education and vigorously arouse all organizations and compatriots to concerted efforts to defend their living and rights. Then followed speeches of representatives from all walks of life. A resolution on the discussed item was adopted there.
Suppression of pro-reunification patriotic forces
Pyongyang, March 22 (KCNA) -- Rodong Sinmun today in a signed commentary denounces the South Korean rulers for sentencing to prison a member of the "Chollima Singing Group", a group of students, who sang songs of the north, and urges them to stop the fascist suppression of the pro-reunification patriotic forces. The news analyst says: It is natural that north's songs loved by foreigners were sung by fellow countrymen in the south. Students' forming a "Chollima Singing Group" and singing songs of the north should not be incriminated in any case.
The South Korean rulers never let a chance pass by without talking about "engagement policy".
Whom and how can they engage while failing to embrace even those who sang songs of the north? "Improved inter-Korean relations" and "reconciliation and cooperation" loud-mouthed by them are nothing but a window-dressing. They are now employing every base move to dampen the ever growing desire of the South Korean people to achieve reunification through reconciliation with the north and communism and to impair the high authority of the north.
Preparatory committees formed abroad
Pyongyang, March 22 (KCNA) -- Preparatory committees have been inaugurated in different countries to commemorate the 87th birth anniversary of the President Kim Il Sung. The deputy prime minister and Minister of Education, Youth and Sports of Cambodia who is also general secretary of the Funcinpec Party was elected chairman of the Cambodian preparatory committee while the Minister of State for Water, Territory and Environment was elected co-chairman of the Ugandan preparatory committee. A Congolese preparatory committee fixed the period between March 15 and April 16 as a commemoration month. Preparatory committees decided to hold colorful events including photo exhibitions, lecture meetings and reading sessions around Sun's Day.
Letter to UNSC president
Pyongyang, March 22 (KCNA) -- The DPRK permanent representative to the United Nations sent a letter on Mar. 9 to the president of the UN Security Council (UNSC) indicting U.S. troops for their brutal acts during the Korean War. The letter was distributed on March 11 as UNSC document S / 1999 / 251. The letter said: During the past Korean War, the United States used germ and chemical weapons by abusing the name of the UN, thus killing a large number of innocent people. This is unethical war crimes which must be known to the world. Such unethical crimes were committed under the name of the UN, which is a direct breach of the purpose and principles of the UN charter. The UN should take an issue with the use of germ and chemical weapons and genocide and adopt measures to prevent their recurrence. The letter exposed the U.S. purpose of keeping the "UN command" in South Korea and urged that the UNSC take an immediate measure to deprive the U.S. troops present in South Korea of the name of the UN so that the United States cannot abuse it for the purpose of realizing its strategic ambition.