Rodong Sinmun Thursday observes this in a signed article.

It goes on:

The south Korean ruling forces are kicking up with bloodshot eyes a terror-ridden atmosphere of suppression of the progressive democratic forces as a revenge for the heavy defeat inflicted upon them in the "elections to local self-governing bodies".

This brutal repressive campaign of those forces has thrown different civic and public organizations including the "Korean National Council for the Promotion of the Reunification by Federal Formula" and the Headquarters of the Movement for the Withdrawal of the U.S. Forces and even innocent citizens into the mire of pain and uneasiness.

The dictatorship and suppression so frantically intensified by the south Korean ruling forces in utter disregard of the people's mind-set are aimed at recovering their crushing defeat in the above-said elections through their fascist crackdown, tiding over their ruling crisis and quelling the resolution of the progressive democratic forces to come out against them in the forthcoming "by-election to the National Assembly."

The reality goes to prove that the Lee Myung Bak group of traitors is resorting to its high-handed and arbitrary actions, dictatorship and suppression in order to prolong its political careers and it is, therefore, impossible to achieve independent and democratic development of the south Korean society and achieve national reunification unless its treacherous rule is terminated. There should be neither expectation nor illusion about the Lee dictatorial forces, concludes the daily.