N. Korea to Kick off Month-long Arirang Festival in August

North Korea plans to launch a month-long massive gymnastics extravaganza known as the Arirang Festival in August, a tour agency said on June 9.
The festival, named after a famous Korean folk song, has been held almost annually since 2002, when it debuted to celebrate the 90th birthday of North Korea's late founder, Kim Il-sung, the father of the country's current leader, Kim Jong-il.
The massive event will open on Aug. 1 and run until Sept. 9, Koryo Tours, a Beijing-based agency that specializes in trips to North Korea, said on its Web site without elaborating.
The festival features tens of thousands of young gymnasts performing synchronized acrobatics, dances and flip-card mosaic animation in what is believed to be the largest gymnastics show in the world.
The show is a subject of outside criticism as it mobilizes young children for rigid training without providing sufficient nutrition.
Critics also say the show is a propaganda tool to extol leader Kim Jong-il, who runs a massive cult of personality around his family.
Former South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun watched the performance during a presidential trip to Pyongyang for talks with Kim in 2007.