Five-day mourning planned for Hwang

A five-day mourning period followed by a public funeral will be held for Hwang Jang-yop, a top North Korean defector who died Sunday morning, his funeral organizing committee said Monday. 

“(The committee) has decided to observe five days of mourning and a public funeral service (for Hwang), so as to allow as many mourners as possible to pay their tributes,” Kim Seong-min, a member of the committee to organize Hwang’s funeral, said. Kim is the president of Free North Korea Radio, a Seoul-based station run by defectors. 

“Discussions are underway with the government in order to have his remains buried at the National Cemetery,” he added. 

The government is considering conferring the first-class Order of Civil Merit on him, which should make him eligible for burial at the cemetery. 

“We’re positively considering the matter,” Unification Minister Hyun In-taek said. 

Kim Suk-hyang, stepdaughter of the late North Korean defector Hwang Jang-yop, burns incense at his altar at a hospital in Seoul on Monday. (Joint Press Corps)