Pyongyang, December 20 (KCNA) -- The DPRK has turned into the sea of tears and grief.

The statues of President Kim Il Sung and mosaics depicting leader Kim Jong Il are crowded with people shedding bitter tears at the sad news of the demise of Kim Jong Il.

The army and the people are seized with the bitterest grief at the unbelievable news.

People, young and old, men and women, are calling Kim Jong Il, who gave tireless field guidance, making total dedication day and night to the happiness of the people till the closing days of the year in the wake of the difficult arduous march, the forced march.

Kim Jong Il's whole life was a heroic life.

He was born in Mt. Paektu, the sacred mountain of the revolution, as the son of guerrillas and grew up to be a great revolutionary. He wisely led the Workers' Party of Korea, the army and the people for decades, performing immortal revolutionary feats before the country, people, times and history.

He developed in depth the immortal Juche idea, the Songun idea founded by Kim Il Sung with his energetic ideological and theoretical activities and glorified it as the guiding idea of the era of independence, thus giving a steady continuity to the Korean revolution.

Kim Jong Il honorably defended the socialist gains and turned the DPRK into an invincible political and ideological power, a nuclear weapons state and a military power with the Songun politics despite the collapse of the world socialist system, the demise of Kim Il Sung which was the greatest loss to the nation, the imperialist allied forces' vicious offensive to stifle the DPRK and severe natural disasters.

He set forth the grand goal of building a thriving nation and led the nation-wide general onward march for its realization, thus bringing about great innovations and leap forward in socialist construction.

He led all the Koreans to the road of independence and the great national unity and ushered in the June 15 era of reunification in which the noble idea of "By the Korean nation itself" is coming true.

He energetically conducted external activities under the uplifted banner of independence against imperialism and enhanced the international prestige and dignity of the DPRK, making immortal contribution to the accomplishment of human cause of independence.

Looking back upon his life amid the bitterest grief, the Korean people are vowing to be faithful to the idea and cause of General Kim Jong Un, who is identical to Kim Jong Il.