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A North Korean delegation on Sunday became the first from the country to pay an official visit to the Seoul¡¯s National Cemetery, which commemorates war victims including those of the Korean War. The delegation arrived on Sunday for four days of celebrations of 60 years since Korea's liberation from Japanese colonial rule.
The 182-strong delegation of officials and civilians headed by Kim Ki-nam of the North¡¯s Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland paid only a silent tribute but did not lay flowers or burn incense. The North Koreans reportedly said during negotiations with South Korea on Aug. 5 they were not in the habit of burning incense and rarely laid flowers.
The delegation approached the memorial monument guided by cemetery officials while an honor guard lined both sides of the path.
On a signal from South Korean officials, they bowed their heads in silence for about 10 seconds. They spent a total of about five minutes at the cemetery.
Earlier, Kim met South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young at the Sheraton Grande Walkerhill Hotel, where the North Koreans are staying. Kim said the delegation was visiting the site because those who lost their lives fighting for Korea's liberation were buried there, but he avoided mention of the Korean War, of which the National Cemetery is symbolic.
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A North Korean delegation visiting the South to attend joint Liberation Day events is greeted by South Koreans on arrival at Incheon International Airport on Sunday morning.
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At the meeting, Lim Dong-ok, a senior official of the North Korean Workers' Party, reminded former unification minister Lim Dong-won of a fight over a memorial visit five years ago. Ahead of the inter-Korean summit of 2000, North Korean leader Kim Jong-il several times urged Lim to persuade South Korean president Kim Dae-jung and other officials to visit the tomb of former leader Kim Il-sung at Kumsusan Memorial Palace. The South Koreans demurred. Sunday¡¯s reminder appears to be a broad hint that future visiting South Korean officials will have to bite the bullet and go to the Kumsusan Palace.
North Korea's state-run media did not report the visit to the cemetery. The Rodong Sinmun, the mouthpiece of the Workers Party of Korea, ran an editorial on page 5 "enthusiastically¡± welcoming the joint North-South Liberation Day events, but made no mention of the North Korean delegation¡¯s visit.
The North Koreans will reportedly pay a courtesy call to Cheong Wa Dae on Wednesday. If they do, it will apparently be in their capacity as special envoys of Kim Jong-il, and there is speculation that they could pass on a personal message from their leader. At joint celebrations to mark the June 15, 2000 Joint Declaration in Pyongyang this year, Unification Minister Chung Dong-young, who headed Seoul¡¯s delegation, met with Kim as President Roh Moo-hyun's special envoy and conveyed a verbal message from the president.
The North Koreans will also pay a courtesy call to National Assembly Speaker Kim One-ki on Tuesday and are expected to meet with lawmakers from both the ruling and opposition parties at the National Assembly, in the first visit by North Korean lawmakers to the parliament.
The North and South Korean delegations attended an inter-Korean football match held after the opening ceremony for the Liberation Day events at Seoul¡¯s World Cup Stadium on Sunday. Afterwards, they moved to the Prime Minister's residence in Samcheong-dong for a welcome dinner hosted by Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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