August 21 2006

Rim Tong Ok Passes Away
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) -- Rim Tong Ok, deputy to the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly and director of a department of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, died of an incurable disease at the age of 70 at 7 a.m. on Aug. 20, Juche 95 (2006). The Central Committee of the WPK and the Presidium of the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly said in his obituary published on Sunday that Rim was a faithful revolutionary soldier who fought with all devotion for national reunification and the victory of the revolutionary cause of Juche, upholding the leadership of the Party and the leader.
Firmly armed with the Juche idea and Songun idea of the Party, he remained boundlessly loyal to the Party and dedicated his all to the accomplishment of the cause of national reunification till the last moments of his life, the obituary noted.
It said although he passed away, his merits for the Party and the revolution, the country and the nation would remain long.
Rim Tong Ok worked as a member of the leading organ of the Central Committee of the Party and a deputy to the Supreme People's Assembly for many years and was also active as vice-chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland.


Koreans Will Surely Force Japan to Pay for Its Past Crimes
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) -- The DPRK will never allow the sworn enemy Japan to keep the crimes committed by it against Koreans in the past buried into oblivion no matter how much water may flow under the bridge but employ every means and method to force it to pay for the blood shed by them without fail. A spokesman for the Association of Korean Victims of Forcible Drafting and Their Bereaved Families declared this in a statement released on Monday 96 years since the Japanese imperialists cooked up the criminal "Korea-Japan Annexation Treaty" by a coercive and fraudulent method on Aug. 22, 1910.
Bitterly denouncing the monstrous crimes committed by Japan against humanity, the statement said: The Korean nation had undergone the sorrow of being a stateless nation for more than 40 years since Korea was deprived of its national sovereignty. However, Japan is justifying its past crimes and trying to go without making any apology or compensation for them even in this new century.
The statement went on:
It was by the force of the "treaty" that Korea was far removed from modern civilization, the Korean people were subject to the miserable fate of a ruined nation, the precious national treasures and cultural heritages that had been handed down from their ancestors were plundered as collections for luxury and pleasure of the Japanese robbers and rich natural resources shipped to Japan for the production of war supplies for its war of aggression.
What is more intolerable is that the Japanese reactionaries and right-wing politicians do not bother to let loose such reckless outcries as claiming that the annexation of Korea was "legitimate" under the situation that prevailed at that time, Japan's colonial rule over Korea "contributed" to Korea's modernization and the Koreans "benefited" from it.
Japan, far from making a sincere apology and compensation for the crimes perpetrated by it against the Korean people in the past, has evaded its responsibility for liquidating its past though the last century was replaced by a new one and persistently pursued its hostile policy towards the DPRK, availing itself of the U.S. moves to stifle the DPRK. In recent years Japan, pretending to be a victim, adopted the "North Korean Sanctions Law" and applied "sanctions" against the DPRK like a thief crying "Stop the thief!"
Japan should redress its past crimes at an early date, paying heed to the towering grudge and resentment of the Korean victims and their bereaved families.


S. Korean Trade Unions Go on Strikes
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) -- The struggle of south Korean workers for defending their vital rights is gaining momentum, according to south Korean MBC and KBS. More than 5,000 workers under the Ssangyong Motor Trade Union went on an indefinite general strike on August 16.
The union warned that it would continue the strike until the company side withdraws the restructuring plan which drives the workers to death.
Meanwhile, Hyun Dai Iron Trade Union entered into a general strike on the same day.


Anti-U.S., Anti-War Struggle Urged in S. Korea
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) -- The Solidarity for Implementing the South-North Joint Declaration reportedly held street oratorical meetings against the U.S. and war and for the withdrawal of the U.S. troops in all districts of Seoul from July 11 to August 12. It formed an oratorical group mainly with its representatives and advisors and had 27 street oratorical meetings. In this course, it conducted anti-U.S. agitation activities in various forms and ways such as 10 million-signature campaign, anti-U.S. rally and art performance for the withdrawal of the U.S. forces, in solidarity with local civic and public organizations.
The speakers called upon all the people to turn out in the struggle to implement the four slogans: shattering the U.S. war moves, rejecting the signing of south Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, opposing the aggressive south Korea-U.S. military alliance and forcing the U.S. troops to withdraw from south Korea.
Noting in unison that the heightened tension on the Korean Peninsula is attributable to the U.S. hostile policy towards the north, they said the Korean nation should unite and all its members should turn out in the struggle against the U.S. and war and for the withdrawal of the U.S. forces, if a holocaust of war is to be averted.
They explained the problems presented by the south Korea-U.S. FTA and the danger posed by the expansion of the U.S. military base in Phyongthaek and the "strategic flexibility" of the U.S troops present in south Korea.


Nuclear Armament of U.S. Troops in S. Korea under Fire
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) -- It was recently disclosed that 2.74 million depleted uranium shells have been stockpiled in the U.S. military bases in Suwon, Chongju, Osan and other places of south Korea. Rodong Sinmun Monday says in a signed commentary that the U.S. imperialists have stockpiled nuclear weapons and depleted uranium shells in south Korea in a bid to implement their criminal strategy towards the DPRK by imposing nuclear holocaust upon the Korean nation.
The commentary goes on:
The U.S. is the most dangerous criminal state that has introduced weapons of mass destruction such as nukes and depleted uranium shells into other country to impose nuclear disaster upon the Korean nation.
The U.S. imperialist aggressor troops in south Korea and their military bases where a lot of nuclear war means have been deployed are the root cause of a nuclear war gravely threatening peace on the Korean Peninsula. Therefore, their existence can never be permitted as it is very important issue related to the security of the Korean nation.
The south Korean people should never permit the aggressor troops and nuclear weapons threatening them and the entire Korean nation and the Korean Peninsula.


Flow to Independence Cannot Be Turned Back: Rodong Sinmun
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) -- No moves of the imperialists can put down the independent purpose and desire of the progressives or turn back the main stream of the present era toward independence, declares Rodong Sinmun on Monday. The author of the article says:
The struggle of the progressives for independence is sure to win as it represents the desire and demand of the popular masses and corresponds to the flow of history.
It is important for all the countries to legitimately exercise their independent rights in frustrating the strong-arm and arbitrary practices of the imperialists and accomplishing the human cause of independence.
Defending Juche and national character is the main requirement for pursuing an independent foreign policy. It is the highest manifestation of independence to defend and strengthen this character.
Respecting the sovereignty of all countries is a major demand for realizing independence of the popular masses. There are countries big and small, developed and less developed, but all the countries are equal in the international relations and they have independent rights. No country has the right to impose its idea, system and way of life upon other countries. Especially the acts of forcing one's will upon others by a strong arm and encroaching upon others' sovereignty must never be tolerated.
It is impossible for all countries and nations to enjoy independent rights as full-fledged members of the international community, unless the principles of impartiality and equality are respected in the international relations.
The struggle for independence is, in essence, an anti-imperialist struggle. A resolute fight should be put up against imperialism without the slightest illusion about it. Herein lies the correct way of carrying the human desire for independence into reality.
To achieve the unity of the progressive people aspiring after independence is an important matter arising from the intrinsic demand of the present international situation and struggle for independence.
It is truth borne out by the practical experiences of the Korean revolution that the way of achieving the prosperity of the country and the nation lies in sticking hard to the principle of independence. The Songun politics of the Workers' Party of Korea is the supreme manifestation of independent politics.

Kim Jong Il Sends Wreath to Bier of Late Rim Tong Ok
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) -- General Secretary Kim Jong Il sent a wreath to the bier of the late Rim Tong Ok, deputy to the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly and department director of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, on Monday, expressing deep condolences over his death.

Ryanggang Provincial Art Theatre Built
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) -- The Ryanggang Provincial Art Theatre has been constructed to be a monumental edifice in the Songun era in the DPRK. The interior and exterior of the theatre, located in Hyesan City, Ryanggang Province, has been decorated in a unique way to suit the specific feature of the northern highlands of the country and the requirement of the new century.
The facade is flanked with murals depicting the native home of Kim Jong Il in the Secret Camp on Mt. Paektu and the native home of anti-Japanese war hero Kim Jong Suk in Hoeryong. And the interior and exterior walls of the theatre are clad with natural granites and marbles in grandeur and splendour. It, with a plottage of more than 33,000 square meters and a total floor space of some 20,000 square meters, has a horizontally moving and revolving stage and over 240 rooms including general practicing room, creation room and dance practicing room.
It is well furnished with state setting and lighting, equipment of automatically controlling temperature and humidity and with cultural and welfare service facilities.
After the inauguration performance, Jon Ok Song, director of the Ryanggang Provincial Art Troupe, said in an interview with KCNA that the troupe was happy to give a performance in the well-built theatre and would make a positive contribution to efflorescing the revolutionary soldier culture of the Songun era by putting a lot of song and dance pieces loved by people on stage.

Muyedobothongji, Old Book
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) --Muyedobothongji is an old illustrated book on martial arts which synthesizes the traditional martial arts movements of Korea in a systematic way. The book was published at the instruction of Jongjo (1777 - 1800), the 22nd King of the Ri Dynasty. Its preface was written by the King.
In 1790, the 14th year following his enthronement, Muyedobothongji was printed in Chinese characters along with the first volume of Muyedobothongjionhae annotating the book in Korean.
Given in Muyedobothongji are picture-illustrated martial arts movements including handling of various swords and knives, boxing method, spear-handling and cudgel-handling.
The book reflects the traditional sword-handing methods. It introduces how to handle Korean-made swords, how to fight with two swords in both hands and how to use the sword with a long haft.
The part of boxing method of the book gives picture-illustrated basic movements of 25 boxing methods and 48 movements derived from them and then connects each separate movement into one.
Figuring there are the traditional Thaekgyon (foot-kicking) methods of Korea.
The illustrations were drawn by famous artist Kim Hong Do (1760 - ?) and explanation and edition were made by realist scholar Pak Je Ga (1750 - 1805) and Ri Tok Mu (1741 - 1793).
Paek Tong Su, warrior of the government training center which was founded after the Imjin Patriotic War (1592 - 1598) against the Japanese invaders, gave technical guidance to the book compilation.
The Japanese imperialists who had looked with covetous eyes upon the Korean cultural heritage prohibited the Korean people from playing all the martial arts games including a stone-throwing fight in 1908. And they, by dint of armed forces, broke into the national historical book storehouses in different parts of Korea to plunder priceless documents of the nation including the True Records of the Ri Dynasty and the Muyedobothongji.
The book Muyedobothongji, however, was defended by people in northwestern area of Korea centering around Pyongyang and it is now kept with good care in the Grand People's Study House.
The feature film "Pyongyang Nalpharam" now on screen in various places of the DPRK reveals the predatory nature of the Japanese invaders who fabricated the treaty on "Korea-Japan Annexation" at the point of bayonet in 1910 and wove every base plot to pillage the book and shows patriotic Pyongyang men of martial arts who defended the book at the cost of their lives.

Director of Japanese Inoki Office Arrives
Pyongyang, August 21 (KCNA) -- Kanji Inoki, director of the Inoki Office, and his party arrived here Monday to participate in the Second International Martial Arts Games. They were greeted at the airport by Jong Jae Hun, general secretary of the International Martial Arts Games Committee, and officials concerned.