DPRK General Secretary Kim Jong Il together with commanding officers of the KPA, visited the Kumsusan Memorial Palace at Monday midnight to pay homage to President Kim Il Sung. Kim Jong Il entered the hall where the statue of the president stands.
He was accompanied by Jo Myong Rok, first vice-chairman of the NDC of the DPRK and director of the General Political Department of the KPA, and Kim Yong Chun, chief of the general staff and Kim Il Chol, minister of the People's Armed Forces, who are vice-chairmen of the NDC and others and the staff members of the supreme command of the KPA.
He together with commanding officers of the KPA paid high tribute to the statue of the president.
Then he entered the hall where the president lies in state for perpetuity.
He together with them paid homage to the president in the deepest reverence.
Reception given by WPK Central Committee
The Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea gave a reception at the People's Palace of Culture Monday in honor of the visiting political party delegations and delegates of different countries on the occasion of the 90th birth anniversary of President Kim Il Sung. Choe Thae Bok, secretary of the WPK Central Committee, in a speech said that Kim Il Sung who embarked upon the road of revolution in his early years founded the immortal Juche idea to clearly indicate the way of the struggle of the popular masses for independence and hewed out the era of independence through his great revolutionary practice.
The WPK will in the future, too, further strengthen friendship and unity with all the progressive political parties of the world aspiring after independence and socialism against imperialism and make positive contributions to the common cause for the building of a new, independent and just world in the idea of independence, friendship and peace, he added.
"Arirang" performance held
The mass gymnastic and artistic performance "Arirang" involving 100.000 people was held at the May Day Stadium on April 14 to commemorate the 90th birth anniversary of President Kim Il Sung. The stadium was decorated with ornaments describing kimilsungias and kimjongilias, letters "90th anniversary" and various electronic display instruments.
Seeing the performance were Kim Yong Nam, Hong Song Nam and other senior party and state officials, leading officials of the party, armed forces and power organs, ministries, national institutions and public organizations, former Unconverted Long-Term Prisoners who are called pro-reunification patriots, servicemen of the Korean People's Army and working people in Pyongyang.
Also seeing it were the delegation of Koreans in Japan and delegations of Koreans in different regions and overseas compatriots staying here to commemorate the 90th birth anniversary of the president.
Present on invitation were foreign political party delegations and delegates, delegations and delegates of the Juche idea study organizations and friendly organizations from different countries, delegates of international organizations, diplomatic envoys and embassy officials here and foreigners.
The mass gymnastic and artistic performance "Arirang," a monumental masterpiece of the 21st century, consists of various acts including "Arirang", "Arirang nation", "army-based Arirang", "Arirang rainbow" and "Arirang for reunification".
At the end of the performance, firecrackers burst forth again and seas of dances and flowers rolled in.
(People's Daily April 16, 2002)
