Advertisement
North Koreans’ loyalty on show as thousands pay tribute to dynasty leaders on founder Kim Il-sung’s birthday
- North Koreans are taught from birth to revere the Kim family and the ceremonies surrounding such occasions are one of the ways in which authorities reinforce loyalty
Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
Tens of thousands of North Koreans turned out to pay tribute to their leaders on Monday, the most important day of the isolated, nuclear-armed country’s ritual calendar.
Advertisement
In the North April 15 is known as the Day of The Sun, the anniversary of the 1912 birth of the country’s founder Kim Il-sung, whose son Kim Jong-il succeeded him and grandson Kim Jong-un, the current leader, inherited power in turn.
North Koreans are taught from birth to revere the Kim family and the ceremonies surrounding such occasions are one of the ways in which authorities reinforce loyalty.
From early morning, a steady stream of citizens arrived at Mansu hill in Pyongyang, where giant bronze statues of the two elder Kims look out over the capital.
Platoons of soldiers, staff of work units, families, newlyweds and tourists all lined up before the images, advancing to place flowers at their base.
Advertisement
Advertisement