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NORTH KOREA THIS WEEK NO. 463 (Aug. 23, 2007)
*** NEWS IN BRIEF (Part 1)
N. Korea makes all-out efforts to recover from floods
SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea is reportedly intensifying efforts to recover from recent flood damage as heavy rains have eased. Due to the North's extensive flood disaster, the two Koreas have even rescheduled the second inter-Korean summit in Pyongyang, originally set for late August, to delay for more than one month.
The (North) Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Aug. 22 said ministries and national institutions are rendering sincere help to inhabitants of flood-stricken areas.
"The Ministry of Electric Power Industry, the Ministry of Metal Industry, the Ministry of Construction and Building Materials Industries, the Ministry of Forestry and the Ministry of Railways and other units have taken measures to send electricity, iron and steel, cement, timber, electric poles, etc. to the afflicted areas in time," the KCNA said.
A variety of daily necessities, vehicles and medical services were provided by the officials, it added. More than 10 percent of the North's farmland is known to have been destroyed, and the number of dead and missing is estimated to reach more than 300, with the homeless numbering about 300,000.
The KCNA on Aug. 21 said the DPRK (North Korea) Red Cross Society is intensifying relief activities to repair the flood damage and to stabilize people's lives in the flood-stricken areas.
According to the North's media, the rehabilitation work is being carried out under the leadership of the National Defense Commission, headed by the country's leader Kim Jong-il, unlike previous cases when the Cabinet took charge. Many soldiers and residents were mobilized for the restoration of damaged infrastructure such as the railway sector.
The North also asked the international community for help in the recovery effort. The KCNA on Aug. 20 said the delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies working in the country inspected various areas of South Hamgyong Province hit by the recent flooding.
The severe flood damage caused the two Koreas to postpone their summit, originally scheduled to be held in late August, until early October. President Roh Moo-hyun and Kim Jong-il are to meet from Oct. 2-4 in Pyongyang.
South Korea plans to send 7.1 billion won (US$7.5 million) worth of relief goods to North Korea, while international agencies and institutions along with the U.S. also promised to make donations to the communist country.
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North Korea to digitalize every college library
SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea, which has emphasized information technology as a means of boosting its sluggish economy, is pushing to digitalize every college library in the country, a pro-Pyongyang newspaper in Japan said on Aug. 21.
The Choson Sinbo, organ of the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, said the North's Education Ministry is trying to establish such a stronghold of computer education at each college to enhance program development and applied knowledge.
"The Education Ministry directed every university to make multimedia lecture room and erect related faculty," the newspaper said, adding that the ministry is encouraging all the colleges to receive remote education from the digital library of the Kimchaek University of Technology.
The North set up digital libraries at Kimchaek University of Technology in 2005 and Kimilsung University this year, based on Internet and data bases.
The Choson Sinbo added that the ministry also told colleges to carry out compulsory classes in foreign languages, considering the importance of foreign languages in acquiring advanced science and technology from abroad.
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N.K. trade minister visits Syria and Iran
SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea's trade minister visited Syria and Iran, which are both at odds with the United States, to enhance economic cooperation and express solidarity against U.S. "imperialism," the North's media said.
The Syrian government called North Korea its comrade in the struggle against imperialists, stressing close relations between Pyongyang and Damascus, the North's state-run radio station said on Aug. 16, quoting the delegation visiting the Middle Eastern country.
The Korean Central Broadcasting Station said, "Syria's Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-Otari on Aug. 13 met with the economic delegation from the DPRK, and lauded the stubborn fighting spirit of the DPRK against the pressure of the imperialists as an encouraging element for Syria and the world people."
DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The Syrian prime minister was also quoted as saying that the development of trade between the two countries is beneficial to the interests of both peoples.
The (North) Korean Central News Agency on Aug. 17 said a protocol of the fifth meeting of the DPRK-Syria Joint Economic Committee was signed in Syria on Aug. 14.
Earlier, Rim Kyong-man left Pyongyang to visit Iran and Syria on Aug. 4, and met with Iran's Vice President Parvis Davoudi on Aug. 11. Davoudi reportedly emphasized swift improvement of relations between Tehran and Pyongyang. According to Iran's media, Davoudi also listed the trade, business, technology and industrial grounds on which ties between the two countries could be promoted. He referred to the experiences shared by both countries, saying the Iranian and Korean nations had defeated bullying powers via resistance in various events by adopting a wise policy.
Meanwhile, the Rodong Sinmun, organ of the North's ruling Workers' Party, claimed on Aug. 16 that the recent U.S. plan for huge weapon sales to Middle Eastern nations is aimed at preventing Iran and Syria from resisting the U.S. attempt to exert influence upon other countries.
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N. Korea's trade union federation holds meeting
SEOUL (Yonhap) -- North Korea's trade union federation held its second and last plenary meeting of the year in a northeastern industrial city in mid-August, pledging to be loyal to the North's leader Kim Jong-il and to lead mass movements of the communist state.
The (North) Korean Central News Agency on Aug. 17 said the 59th plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the General Federation of Trade Unions of (North) Korea (GFTUK) took place in Hamhung, South Hamgyong Province, on Aug. 14.
"The meeting underscored the need for all trade union officials to become officials of ability who prove successful in their work with the same intense loyalty to the leader, fervent enthusiasm and great ability as displayed by the Party officials in the period of laying down the Party's foundation for carrying forward the cause of Juche (self-reliance) in the 1970s," the KCNA said.
A report was delivered by the chairman of the Central Committee of the GFTUK, Kim Pyong-phal, followed by speeches, the news outlet added. Kim became the new chairman at the 58th plenary meeting of the GFTUK on July 10, replacing Ryom Sung-gil.
The GFTUK, founded on Nov. 30 in 1945, is a social organization under the control of the North's ruling Workers' Party. It has 1.6 million members, mainly laborers and clerks over the age of 30.
(END)
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