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S. Korean Authorities Urged to Ensure Event Common to Nation

Pyongyang, June 10 (KCNA) -- The permanent representative of the South Side Committee for Implementing the June 15 Joint Declaration and the executive chairman of the opposition Democratic Party held a press conference at the "National Assembly" on June 7 and demanded the authorities ensure the event common to the nation to mark the 11th anniversary of the joint declaration, the south Korean Yonhap News said.

They accused the authorities of disallowing the visit to the north by a delegation of the South Side Committee to discuss the issue of the June 15 event this year under the pretext of the "May 24 step".

The inter-Korean relations of reconciliation and peace had been promoted in the past through the June 15 events common to the nation, they said.

But the Lee Myung Bak "government" blocked even the smallest exchange of NGOs and, consequently, the events have not taken place since 2008, they noted, holding that the exchange of NGOs should be normalized to bring the inter-Korean relations back on a normal track as the first step.