South Korean delegation visits Pyongyang to commemorate Oct. 4 Summit Declaration

Minister of Unification Cho Myoung-gyon with Ri Son-gwon, chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, in Pyongyang on Oct .4. (photo pool)

160-member delegation visits North Korea 14 days after Pyongyang summit

“Welcome to Pyongyang! We hope you enjoy our stay.” (Ri Son-gwon, chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland)

“Pyongyang really feels like a neighbor’s house. Being back in the city [after two weeks] feels as routine as visiting the folks next door.” (Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon)

As Ri greeted the 160 members of the South Korean delegation to the National Unification Conference Commemorating the 11th Anniversary of the Oct. 4 Summit Declaration when they arrived at Pyongyang Sunan International Airport on the morning of Oct. 4, he pointed to Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon and to Democratic Party leader Lee Hae-chan, who was visiting North Korea in the capacity of chairman of the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation.

“These two gentlemen are returning to Pyongyang exactly 14 days after [the inter-Korean summit in September],” Ri said.

“Since the Apr. 27 [Panmunjom] Declaration originated from the Oct. 4 Declaration and even from the June 15 Joint Declaration, I hope that spirit will carry over into a positive commemorative event [at the People's Palace of Culture on Oct. 5],” Lee said.

“Just as it’s impossible to imagine a trunk without roots, the June 15, Oct. 4, Apr. 27 and Pyongyang Joint Declarations themselves can be said to be criteria for unification and steps taken on behalf of the nation,” Ri said in response.

The South Korean delegation, including Unificaiton Minister Cho Myoung-gyon and to Democratic Party leader Lee Hae-chan, tours the Pyongyang Sci-Tech Complex on Oct. 4. (photo pool)

After arriving at Pyongyang and dropping their luggage off at the Koryo Hotel, the South Korean delegation took a tour of the Pyongyang Sci-Tech Complex, located on Ssuk Island, guided by Jon Jong-su, vice-chair of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland.

“We’re focusing our efforts on developing science and technology,” Jon said.

“Education and science are the path to the future!” Lee wrote in the visitors’ book, and then remarked, “It’s great to be here next to Kim Chaek University [of Technology]!”

A welcome performance for the National Unification Conference Commemorating the 11th Anniversary of the Oct. 4 Summit Declaration in Pyongyang on Oct. 4. (photo pool)

Next, the delegation headed to the Pyongyang Grand Theatre and watched a welcome performance featuring the same program as the first day of the inter-Korean summit on Sept. 18. During a separate meeting that evening, Lee Hae-chan and Kim Yong-nam, the president of the Presidium of the North Korean Supreme People's Assembly, discussed a meeting between the two sides’ legislatures. North Korean officials showed off the Pyongyang skyline at night, bragging that the city’s troubles with electricity were over.

“The situation in Pyongyang is really different from the last time I was here, more than a decade ago,” said former Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun.

The final event of the delegation’s first day in Pyongyang was a welcome dinner, which was held at the People's Palace of Culture.

By Lee Je-hun, senior staff writer

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