N. Koreans studying joint New Year editorial: KCNA

SEOUL, Jan. 5 (Yonhap) -- North Koreans have been studying an official New Year's
editorial released by the country's leading newspapers, with factories and
enterprises preaching the joint statement to employees and commuters reading it
on buses, subways and other public places, Pyongyang's media said Tuesday.

The report, carried by the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), comes after
about 100,000 people rallied in Pyongyang Saturday to pledge support for the
communist nation's New Year policies.
The editorial called for the rapid development of agriculture, light industry and
the production of higher-quality consumer goods, while urging improved relations
with the U.S. and South Korea.
"Upon receiving the joint editorial, the people are of a view that only when they
grasp the ideas and contents of it, could they uphold the noble intention of the
Workers' Party of Korea, which regards it as the overriding principle in its
activities to improve the people's living standard steadily and spares nothing
for them," the KCNA said.
It said that the North's mass media have repeatedly released the full text of the
joint editorial or articles explaining its content for the purpose of helping the
people in their study.
The KCNA noted that officials at factories, enterprises and co-op farms
throughout the country are striving to convey the ideas and content of the
editorial to the people through various methods.
It also said a large number of factories, including the Kim Jong Suk Pyongyang
Silk Mill, are explaining the editorial to their employees in a profound way and
encouraging them to launch a sweeping campaign to bring about a drastic turn in
improving livelihoods.
"Passionate seminars on the editorial are held at working sites during breaks in
combination with practice and people reading the editorial are seen in buses,
subway cars and other public places," said the report.
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