Korean People Commemorate 5th Anniversary of Late President's Death (8-7-1999)

(The People's Korea, 1999)

A memorial service was held on July 8 at the Kumsusan Memorial Palace in memory of the 5th anniversary of the late President Kim Il Sung's passing away.

Cambodian King Norodom Sihanouk visits the Kumsusan Memorial Palace.

In a mood of the deepest mourning, Korean people commemorated the fifth anniversary of the death of the late President Kim Il Sung with a vow to carry on his cause and build a powerful nation under the leadership of Kim Jong Il. A series of memorial ceremonies included a national memorial service, academic seminars, story-telling and poem reciting meetings, film shows at home and abroad leading up to the anniversary. Most pages in the DPRK's newspapers gave prominence to special essays and features and photos about the founder of the DPRK. With the participation of General Secretary Kim Jong Il, the national memorial service was held on Jun. 8 at the plaza of the Kumsusan Memorial Palace. Millions of Pyongyangites and KPA officers gathered at the plaza to honor the memory of the late President who passed away in 1994. Also seen on the platform of the service were Kim Yong Nam, Jo Myong Rok, Hong Song Nam and other senior party and state officials, members of the WPK Central Committee, leading officers of the armed forces, commission members and ministers of the cabinet, representatives of national institutions and public organizations. Jo Myong Rok, first vice-chairman of the NDC, said in a memorial address, "He was a great founder and leader of Juche Korea," looking back on his whole life. He also stressed General Secretary Kim Jong Il's leadership, saying, "We have been able to win victory in the confrontation with the imperialists thanks to his invincible policy of giving priority to the army." Foreign dignitaries invited to this year's anniversary included Cambodian King Norodom Sihanouk, a close friend of the late President Kim's. Paying tribute to the DPRK's late President, the Cambodian King praised the late President in a speech at a banquet as "the eternal sun of humankind, the vanguard fighter who waged a struggle against imperialism and colonialism."