ID :
70377
Tue, 07/14/2009 - 17:42
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/70377
The shortlink copeid
N. Korean leader gives field guidance to tile factory
(ATTN: UPDATES with picture released by KCNA, CORRECTS the new factory's location as
unknown)
By Kim Hyun
SEOUL, July 14 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has visited a newly
built tile factory, state media said, as fresh speculation emerged about his
health.
In a dispatch dated Monday and published around midnight, the official Korean
Central News Agency (KCNA) said Kim gave "field guidance" to the Taedonggang Tile
Factory and "went round its interior and exterior" to learn about its facilities.
Neither the date of the visit nor the plant's location were revealed.
Subsequent photographs showed Kim walking alongside plant installments while
being briefed by a factory official. Dressed for the outdoors in sunglasses and a
short-sleeved shirt, the 67-year-old leader looked more active and less frail
than he did at last week's official memorial.
The health condition of Kim, who allegedly suffered a stroke in August last year,
returned to intense media scrutiny after South Korea's cable television network
YTN said Monday that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and that the
illness was "life-threatening." The report cited unidentified intelligence
sources at home and in China, but gave no details about his symptoms.
The South Korean government said it had no information to share about the
reported illness, a stance echoed by Washington.
North Korean state media continued to report on Kim's brisk activities, with the
latest visit bringing the total number of his public tours so far this year to
82, compared to 57 last year.
Kim "expressed great satisfaction over the fact that the soldier builders have
built the modern factory in such a manner as to let it win the admiration of
posterity," the KCNA said.
The factory's production relies strictly on locally available raw materials, he
said, and such "successful endeavors being made by all domains of the national
economy ... fully reflect the unshakable faith of the Korean people to build a
great prosperous and powerful nation on this land by their own efforts, resources
and technology without fail."
His entourage included Kim Ki-nam, secretary of the Workers' Party central
committee, party department directors Park Nam-gi and Jang Song-thaek, and Korean
People's Army generals Hyon Chol-hae and Ri Myong-su.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
unknown)
By Kim Hyun
SEOUL, July 14 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has visited a newly
built tile factory, state media said, as fresh speculation emerged about his
health.
In a dispatch dated Monday and published around midnight, the official Korean
Central News Agency (KCNA) said Kim gave "field guidance" to the Taedonggang Tile
Factory and "went round its interior and exterior" to learn about its facilities.
Neither the date of the visit nor the plant's location were revealed.
Subsequent photographs showed Kim walking alongside plant installments while
being briefed by a factory official. Dressed for the outdoors in sunglasses and a
short-sleeved shirt, the 67-year-old leader looked more active and less frail
than he did at last week's official memorial.
The health condition of Kim, who allegedly suffered a stroke in August last year,
returned to intense media scrutiny after South Korea's cable television network
YTN said Monday that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and that the
illness was "life-threatening." The report cited unidentified intelligence
sources at home and in China, but gave no details about his symptoms.
The South Korean government said it had no information to share about the
reported illness, a stance echoed by Washington.
North Korean state media continued to report on Kim's brisk activities, with the
latest visit bringing the total number of his public tours so far this year to
82, compared to 57 last year.
Kim "expressed great satisfaction over the fact that the soldier builders have
built the modern factory in such a manner as to let it win the admiration of
posterity," the KCNA said.
The factory's production relies strictly on locally available raw materials, he
said, and such "successful endeavors being made by all domains of the national
economy ... fully reflect the unshakable faith of the Korean people to build a
great prosperous and powerful nation on this land by their own efforts, resources
and technology without fail."
His entourage included Kim Ki-nam, secretary of the Workers' Party central
committee, party department directors Park Nam-gi and Jang Song-thaek, and Korean
People's Army generals Hyon Chol-hae and Ri Myong-su.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
