The editorial says that Kim Jong Il's election gave steady continuity to the bloodline of the Juche revolution advancing under the banner of independence and the history and tradition of sure victory of socialist Korea.

It notes that Chairman Kim Jong Il was an outstanding thinker and theoretician, great statesman and iron-willed brilliant commander and man of the strongest faith, will and pluck. It goes on:

Putting forward independence as the first lifeline of the country and nation, he wisely led the work to solve all problems arising in the state-building and activities in our own way in line with our actual conditions and our determination and will.

It was his firm will to build a powerful socialist country which achieves prosperity by dint of self-reliance.

As he led the Korean revolution with his iron-willed faith and courage, the spirit of the times like the Kanggye spirit could be created and the flames of making the industrial revolution in the new century and the flames of putting the national economy on a Juche-oriented and modern basis kindled in the face of trials of the history and thus firm material and technical foundation for prosperity provided.

His faith and courage are an engine for resolutely smashing all kinds of challenges and manoeuvres of the hostile forces and reliably safeguarding the security of the state and happiness of the people.

The editorial calls for dynamically hastening the building of a powerful socialist nation by waging an intensive offensive of self-reliance and self-development on all fronts of making a breakthrough head-on with his faith and courage.