Present on invitation were 15,000 labour innovators from the Chollima Steel Complex, the Hwanghae Iron and Steel Complex, the Anju Area Coal Mining Complex, the Jaeryong Mine and the Unryul Mine.

Present there were senior Party, army and state officials and officials concerned.

Kim Yong Nam, member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, made a speech there.

He warmly congratulated the labour innovators who were present on invitation at the grand banquet personally arranged by General Secretary Kim Jong Il on May Day.

Kim Yong Nam said:

Kim Jong Il saw to it that the rare-to-be-seen evening of fireworks the first of its kind in the national history was held on the occasion of the Day of the Sun to demonstrate the invincible might of Songun Korea all over the world. He made sure that the similar grand event was held again to mark May Day most significantly in the world and showed such benevolent loving care of taking measures of inviting workers of the metal industry and its relevant fields to the event.

There are many politicians who work for the people and not a few anecdotes about banquets in the world. However, never has there been such a legend-like story in the history that the leader of a country invited a large contingent of 15,000 ordinary workers to the grand state banquet at the same time.

This benevolence and solicitude shown by Kim Jong Il are an expression of his big expectation and conviction that the labour innovators would play the role of vanguard in bringing about a fresh leap forward in the general offensive to fling open the gate to a thriving nation in 2012, the centenary of birth of President Kim Il Sung, without fail.

He called for giving full play to the heroic spirit and invincible stamina of the workers of the DPRK in the drive for building a thriving nation.

There was a performance given by artistes at the banquet.