South Korea holds funeral for"great leader"Kim Dae-jung

http://timesofearth.com/Worldnews/?NT=0&nid=10904 Seoul, South Korea - Shielded from the scorching sun by paper visors, thousands of black-clad South Koreans bade farewell to Kim Dae-Jung at a state funeral outside parliament - a symbol of the democracy he risked his life for.

Kim, who died Tuesday aged 85, battled to end decades of authoritarian rule and struggled for reconciliation with communist North Korea when he himself became president from 1998-2003.

Kim was "a great leader of modern history" who won worldwide respect, Prime Minister Han Seung-Soo told a state funeral for the Nobel prizewinner.

He won the country's only Nobel prize in 2000 following the first-ever summit with the North. Its leader Kim Jong-Il sent envoys with a wreath to a mourning ceremony last Friday.

A hearse decorated with white chrysanthemums, a traditional mourning flower, brought Kim's flag-draped coffin to the ceremony.

It was preceded by a military honour guard carrying his portrait and followed by family members.

After the national anthem, a history of his career and achievements was read to more than 20,000 mourners in the grounds of parliament.

Prime Minister Han Seung-Soo in a eulogy praised Kim's unyielding courage in the fight for democracy.

Kim survived assassination attempts and a death sentence in his struggle against military-backed rulers. Ex-president Chun Doo-Hwan, whose government passed the death sentence in 1980, attended the funeral.

Democracy blossomed in our country thanks to your sweat and tears, former legislator and friend Park Young-Sook told the ceremony in a quavering voice.

Buddhists, Catholics and Protestant clergy held mourning rites. President Lee Myung-Bak and other VIPs burned incense and bowed before the coffin.

The state funeral, only the second in the country's history, ended with a 21-gun salute. Flanked by police motorcycle outriders, the coffin was taken in a procession to the national cemetery.

Kim never wavered in his commitment to reconciliation with North Korea despite criticism that his sunshine policy failed to curb its nuclear weapons drive.

His death gave Pyongyang a pretext to send high-level envoys to Seoul, the first such visit in 18 months of high tensions. They held talks earlier in the day with Lee, raising hopes of better relations, but did not stay for the funeral.

Former president Kim Dae-Jung contributed greatly to inter-Korean peace and reconciliation even with his death, as he did throughout his lifetime, said opposition party member Oh Su-Ja.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il sent a delegation to the South for the mourning of the former president and, with them, a message to the South's current President Lee Myung-bak whose 18 months in office have seen a sharp deterioration in relations.

The delegation, headed by a top aide to Kim Jong-il, met Lee in the latest sign the impoverished North is softening its tone after a nuclear test in May and missile launches were met with tightened UN sanctions and further international isolation.

Yonhap news agency quoted a senior presidential Blue House official as saying the meeting was a new beginning but "it's too early to expect a thaw in inter-Korean relations".

The meeting lasted about 30 minutes. The Blue House would not disclose the content of the message to Lee.

The reclusive North, furious at Lee's policy of ending aid until Pyongyang starts to dismantle its nuclear weapons programme, has all but cut ties with its far wealthier neighbour.

"President Lee said if South and North Korea solve problems through dialogue and in a sincere manner, there is nothing we cannot resolve," presidential spokesman Lee Dong-kwan said.

"(The North) expressed its gratitude for allowing the meeting and suggests both sides can cooperate and resolve (problems)."

North Korea's KCNA news agency announced the meeting with Lee but said only that the two had discussed "issues of developing relations between the north and south".
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[aquamarinezjoyce]

Hey, Gouki6669 why don't u just shut up, my ears hurt cuz of ur BROKEN ENGLISH...

[grindlounge]

Kim die young

[Gouki6669]

Americans can burn in hell! fuck you all! LONG LIVE NORTH KOREA!

[BDOGuerr3ro]

@marcsman229 fuck you

[ithinkismellyou]

"He tried to take us over, we fucked him over. I feel good"

[forthehorde274]

wow big difference between the north korean reaction to the death of there dictators than the south koreans to there president and also get ur facts straight the north has no freedom and "a great leader" and the free, democratic south has a president

[stojy161994]

@MDLx3 FUCK DEMOCRACY

[MrQorraj]

@Marcsman229 I am not American ,I am Albanian but In this days and year People must live in freedom not like in North Korea and in Albania before some years you the dictator Enver Hoxha ...Peoples have rights to live they lives how they want...

[marcsman229]

@MrQorraj Americans are incredibly stupid

[MDLx3]

Kim Dae-Jung was South Korea's former president a wonderful and right man who even tried reconciliation with North Korea. He is NOT Kim Jung-Il, who was the dictator of North Korea. Get your facts straight before disrespecting a democratic man and his country.