ID :
198622
Tue, 08/02/2011 - 05:24
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/198622
The shortlink copeid
Flood-battered North Korea kicks off Arirang Festival
By Kim Kwang-tae
SEOUL (Yonhap) - North Korea said it has started a massive dance and gymnastics extravaganza in an apparent bid to highlight unity as the country is struggling to recover from a recent deadly typhoon and heavy rain.
The Arirang Festival opened with a huge sea of cheers at May Day Stadium in Pyongyang on Monday evening, just hours after the North announced that gusting winds and flash floods had left dozens of people dead or injured.
The typhoon and heavy downpours also destroyed 2,900 homes across the country and submerged or washed away nearly 60,000 hectares of farmland, a development that has apparently dampened the festive mood.
Still, the North's Culture Minister An Tong-chun said in a speech at the stadium that "Arirang would instill fresh energy and courage into the servicepersons and people, and demonstrate the appearance of singlemindedly united socialist Korea," according to the country's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
Senior North Korean officials, including Vice Premier Kang Nung-su, and foreign guests watched what the KCNA described as fantastic scenes of fascinating art in three-dimensional space.
The festival features tens of thousands of young gymnasts performing synchronized acrobatics, dances and flip-card mosaic animations in what is believed to be the largest gymnastics show in the world.
The performance, 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 performers made a grand epic representation of the exploits President Kim Il-sung and leader Kim Jong-il performed" for the country, the KCNA said in a dispatch on Monday night.
The festival has been a constant subject of outside criticism as it mobilizes young children for rigid training without providing them with 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.
In 2000, Kim watched a massive performance with then-U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and its highlight was a giant mosaic displaying a soaring rocket.
Kim reportedly told Albright, "This will be our last missile," though the North test-fired ballistic missiles later in 2006 and 2009.
The massive event is set to run until Sept. 9, according to the KCNA.
SEOUL (Yonhap) - North Korea said it has started a massive dance and gymnastics extravaganza in an apparent bid to highlight unity as the country is struggling to recover from a recent deadly typhoon and heavy rain.
The Arirang Festival opened with a huge sea of cheers at May Day Stadium in Pyongyang on Monday evening, just hours after the North announced that gusting winds and flash floods had left dozens of people dead or injured.
The typhoon and heavy downpours also destroyed 2,900 homes across the country and submerged or washed away nearly 60,000 hectares of farmland, a development that has apparently dampened the festive mood.
Still, the North's Culture Minister An Tong-chun said in a speech at the stadium that "Arirang would instill fresh energy and courage into the servicepersons and people, and demonstrate the appearance of singlemindedly united socialist Korea," according to the country's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
Senior North Korean officials, including Vice Premier Kang Nung-su, and foreign guests watched what the KCNA described as fantastic scenes of fascinating art in three-dimensional space.
The festival features tens of thousands of young gymnasts performing synchronized acrobatics, dances and flip-card mosaic animations in what is believed to be the largest gymnastics show in the world.
The performance, 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 performers made a grand epic representation of the exploits President Kim Il-sung and leader Kim Jong-il performed" for the country, the KCNA said in a dispatch on Monday night.
The festival has been a constant subject of outside criticism as it mobilizes young children for rigid training without providing them with 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.
In 2000, Kim watched a massive performance with then-U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and its highlight was a giant mosaic displaying a soaring rocket.
Kim reportedly told Albright, "This will be our last missile," though the North test-fired ballistic missiles later in 2006 and 2009.
The massive event is set to run until Sept. 9, according to the KCNA.
