The august name of leader Kim Jong Il and his benevolent image were a banner of victory that instilled in our people confidence in sure victory and will to achieve it and a source of their mental strength, it noted.

That we parted too suddenly and unexpectedly with the great leader Kim Jong Il last year was the greatest loss our nation had suffered in its 5 000-year-long history and the bitterest grief our Party and people had experienced, the editorial said, and went on:

Last year was a year of victory, featured by radical changes and leap forward taken place in the building of a prosperous and powerful nation under the energetic leadership of Kim Jong Il.

Last year significant achievements were made in the great upsurge for improving the people's standard of living, and solid foundations laid for building the country into an economic giant in the 21st century.

The overall appearance of the country has been transformed to be appropriate for a thriving country.

Last year witnessed the demonstration on an ennobling high of the traits of our people who are ready to take the road of the revolution to the end following the great Party.

This year is the year when Kim Jong Il 's plan for achieving prosperity will bear a brilliant fruit, and the year of a grand march, when a new century of Kim Il Sung's Korea begins.

"Glorify this year 2012 as a year of proud victory, a year when an era of prosperity is unfolding, true to the instructions of the great General Kim Jong Il!"–this is the militant slogan the whole Party, the entire army and all the people should uphold this year. The editorial set forth tasks for this year.

The editorial dealt with the tasks as follows:

We must increase our political and ideological might, the might of our unity, to the maximum.

We should staunchly defend the revolutionary heritage bequeathed by Kim Jong Il, whatever the storm and stress.

The whole Party, the entire army and all the people should possess a firm conviction that they will become human bulwarks and human shields in defending Kim Jong Un unto death, and follow the great Party for ever.

We must vigorously launch an all-out drive to implement our Party's grand strategy for achieving prosperity.

The flames of Hamnam represent the banner of the general offensive for the great victory in 2012, a banner of fresh change.

The flames of Hamnam for great innovation should flare up more fiercely in the sectors of light industry and agriculture, the leading sectors for the building of a thriving country.

The vanguard sectors of the national economy, the sectors of basic industries-- electric-power industry, coal-mining industry, metallurgical industry, rail transport, chemical industry should effect innovations and a powerful country be built with the knowledge-based economy of our style through stepped-up industrial revolution in the new century.

We should raise the overall level of the technical equipment onto a new high with the pioneering spirit and creative spirit displayed by the developers at the Ryonha Machine in making rapid progress in producing the latest CNC machine tools.

We should glorify our country as a highly civilized, socialist one.

We should consolidate the national defence capabilities in every way under the unfurled banner of Songun.

The Korean People's Army should demonstrate its heroic mettle and invincible combat efficiency as the army of the leader and the Party.

The entire army should place absolute trust in and follow Kim Jong Un and become human rifles and bombs to defend him unto death, holding high the slogan "Let us defend with our very lives the Party Central Committee headed by the dear respected Comrade Kim Jong Un!"

To achieve victory in general advance for this year it is necessary to strengthen the Party and enhance its leadership role to the maximum.

It is important to radically improve the way of work of officials and their leading abilities as required by the era of great upsurge and give fullest play to the mental strength of the masses of the people.

We must bring about a decisive turn in accomplishing the cause of national reunification as we hold high the slogan "Let all the compatriots open the gates of national reunification full of fresh confidence!"

The stand of national independence and putting the nation above anything else should be maintained in a thoroughgoing way.

National reconciliation and unity should be achieved and the war moves of the bellicose forces at home and abroad be checked and frustrated.

We will, in the future, too, hold fast to our Party's principles of independence, friendship and peace, and strive to develop relations of friendship with countries that respect our country's sovereignty.