(7th LD) N.K. delegation pays respects to late leader, set to meet unification

(ATTN: UPDATES with scheduled meeting with unification minister)
By Kim Hyun and Tony Chang
SEOUL, Aug. 21 (Yonhap) -- A high-level North Korean delegation paid tribute to
late former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung on Friday, offering a wreath and
a moment of silence at a packed memorial altar in Seoul.

The six officials sent by North Korean leader Kim Jong-il were the first to visit
the South since the Lee Myung-bak government came to power 18 months ago. Their
two-day trip offered a rare chance for inter-Korean dialogue after months of
tension.
"Commemorating former President Kim Dae-jung, who followed justice and conscience
to leave an indelible legacy to the Korean people," Kim Ki-nam, a Workers' Party
secretary and chief delegate, wrote in the guestbook at the altar set up at the
National Assembly square.
The delegation placed a wreath sent by Kim Jong-il on the altar and bowed their
heads in silence in front of the former president's giant portrait. The North
Koreans shook hands with each member of Kim's family and aides. Local mourners
cheered and applauded, with some shouting, "Unification!"
Kim Dae-jung, who died Tuesday from complications of pneumonia at age 85, held
the historic first inter-Korean summit with the North Korean leader in 2000. His
sunshine policy facilitated broad social exchanges and aid to develop the North's
dilapidated economy, moves that were rolled back by Lee.
Kim's wife, Lee Hee-ho, thanked the North Korean leader.
"I thank Chairman Kim Jong-il for sending you this long way," Lee, 87, told the
delegation who later visited the non-profit Kim Dae Jung Peace Center in western
Seoul.
The North Korean leader said in a message conveyed by the party secretary,
"Delegations will arrive from many countries, but (the North Korean delegation)
should go there first ... President Kim did a lot for the Korean people."
North Korean media promptly reported the delegation's movements in Seoul. The
group includes Kim Yang-gon, head of the party's unification front department and
a key figure in inter-Korean relations.
The delegation was arranged to meet with Unification Minister Hyun In-taek on
Saturday morning, but "there was no word yet" on whether President Lee would see
them, a senior ministry official said at a background briefing.
The North Koreans said they are open to dialogue.
"I'll meet with everybody. Let's meet to talk," the party secretary was quoted as
telling Seoul's Vice Unification Minister Hong Yang-ho, who received the
delegation at the airport.
Specifics of their itinerary until their departure Saturday afternoon were not
disclosed as Seoul has imposed strict restrictions on media access for "security
reasons."
Security was tight at a Seoul hotel where the delegation was staying. Former
government officials who worked under the Kim Dae-jung administration hosted a
dinner for the North Koreans. As the only incumbent official, Kim Nam-shik,
director general of the Unification Ministry's inter-Korean exchange bureau,
reportedly joined the closed-door dinner.
"We agreed to work together for inter-Korean relations," Lim Dong-won, a former
unification minister under the late president, told reporters after the dinner.
He refused to comment further.
An angry protester confronted Lim, shouting, "Conspirator of Kim Jong-il!" No
major clashes occurred. About 100 police officers were stationed in and around
the hotel.
At the demilitarized zone, North Korea normalized cross-border traffic for South
Koreans, lifting bans it had imposed since December to protest Seoul's hardline
policy. It also reconnected a direct communications channel operated by the Red
Cross at the truce village of Panmunjom, Seoul officials said.
Pyongyang has recently changed course from months of provocative behavior marked
by a long-range rocket and nuclear tests. The U.N. Security Council in response
froze assets of several North Korean officials and entities for their alleged
connection to nuclear and missile programs.
The change in attitude showed during visits to Pyongyang by former U.S. President
Bill Clinton and South Korea's Hyundai Group Chairwoman Hyun Jeong-eun earlier
this month, each of whom had hours of talks with the reclusive North Korean
leader and won the release of detained citizens.
In the United States this week, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson urged the Barack
Obama administration to begin dialogue with Pyongyang.
"Kim Jong-il, you know, he looks like he's turning over power to one of his sons,
so possibly there is the potential for a change. We don't know that, but my point
is it's best to talk to them and not to isolate them. Isolating them has not
helped," Richardson, who has a long history of negotiations with Pyongyang, told
the Fox News Channel after a meeting with North Korean diplomats.
In the meeting with the Hyundai chief, Kim agreed to "energize" inter-Korean
projects, a promise that now appears likely to be implemented. Hyundai is a major
investor in the North, with US$1.2 billion spent on its joint projects.
Meanwhile, South Korea proposed inter-Korean talks to set up family reunions that
have been suspended for nearly two years.
hkim@yna.co.kr
odissy@yna.co.kr
(END)