Monday, February 17, 2003
Happiness filled the humble cottage of Ri Myung Shim today, as her 5-year-old son awoke to find a gift bag of cookies and candy. This was not an offering from the tooth fairy, but a birthday present, of sorts. The gift celebrated the most important day on the North Korean calendar — the birthday of Kim Jong Il, the country's leader. . .
"It is great that children get these gifts," said Li Ok Hwa, a 27-year-old park guide outfitted in stylish white parka and shiny black boots. "That way, they learn who the Dear Leader is and that he is their king." . . .
"This should be the happiest day of the year because it is the Dear General's birthday," said Kim Young Hee, a makeup artist who had just finished applying cherry red lipstick and white face powder to the majorettes. "We are living in affluence, so we don't expect anything special. He is the person who provides us with life and food and happiness."
The government showers real gifts on members of the elite on Mr. Kim's birthday.
"My gift set had canned food, ginseng, liquor and cookies," Chun Moon Il, a composer, said as his brass band worked its way through a lively new number, "Flower Fireworks for Blessing His Birthday."
Down on the state farms here, the workers received a rare gift from Mr. Kim this weekend — 24 hours of electricity.
And, a warning:
While few people here seem aware of the disparity, they do seem to be aware of the Bush administration's warning to North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program. People here are bracing for an attack by the United States, though they say they are not afraid.
"The U.S. would not dare to invade North Korea because we have mighty Kim Jong Il,"
