Chinese netizens complain of hassles from N. Korean leader's visit

BEIJING, May 23 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is traveling across China for the third time in just over a year, apparently to study and learn from China's economic reform, but his insistence on taking a train during each of his trips is getting on the nerves of the Chinese people.
The 69-year-old North Korean leader crossed the border into the northeastern Chinese city of Tumen on Friday, riding a special train for his private use. After passing through Mudanjiang, Changchun and Shenyang, all located in the northeastern part of China, he arrived in Yangzhou near Shanghai late Sunday, prompting the Chinese authorities to block roads and deny access to the city's train station.



"Kim Jong-il has come again, and he's taken the train once more," wrote one netizen on the Chinese microblogging Web site Weibo. "Every time Kim Jong-il's train passes, China's train schedule becomes a mess and it becomes a huge nuisance to China. I hear that China made numerous suggestions to Kim Jong-il that he should come by plane, but he still came by train."
At about 2 p.m., hours before Kim's arrival in Yangzhou, China's Public Security officers were already lining the 8-kilometer road connecting the train station to the guest house where he would stay.
By 6 p.m., some 50 cars with Chinese officials had reached the train station to greet Kim upon his arrival. Around this time, only passengers with tickets were allowed inside the station while all cars were blocked from entering the area. When Kim eventually arrived on his special train around 8 p.m., the Chinese authorities stopped all traffic in the area for 10 minutes while the North Korean leader was taken to his guest house.



"The Public Security Bureau ordered us not to receive any foreign guests starting Sunday," said an employee at a hotel near Kim's guest house. "Foreigners are only allowed to stay with permission from the Bureau."
Other netizens also expressed their annoyance at Kim's preferred mode of transportation.
"Kim Jong-il can apparently shoot down a plane with a pistol, so it's obvious why he doesn't want to take the plane," wrote one netizen.
"Kim Jong-il must be here to win food," wrote another, referring to North Korea's recent appeals for food aid from the international community to feed its impoverished people.