Veterans to receive gift packages to mark “Victory Day” on July 27
War veterans at an event last year marking the 71st anniversary of Victory Day. (Image: KCNA)
The North Korean regime is to provide gifts to war veterans in commemoration of the 72nd anniversary of the signing of the Korean War armistice on July 27, which it promotes as “Victory Day.”
The distribution of gifts as a show of respect and honor to veterans on this occasion is a customary annual practice.
According to an NK Times source in North Hamgyong Province, the directive went out on July 16 to factories, enterprises, and farms nationwide instructing them to understand the difficulties faced by war veterans and to prepare and supply over 20 types of gifts to go in a gift package.
“Do not prepare gifts for veterans as a mere formality,” the source quoted the directive as saying. “Prepare them more generously than in previous years so that the deep love and care of the Party can be genuinely felt.”
In response, Party committees at factories, enterprises, and farms across North Hamgyong Province, and presumably across the entire country, have reportedly begun work to identify the needs of veterans and implement measures to address them.
In the city of Chongjin, for instance, packages being prepared are composed of items intended to support the daily lives of veterans and help them feel the state’s care. They include rice, corn, cooking oil, meat, fish, canned goods, alcohol, medicine, health supplements, nutritional products, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, and more.
“The Victory Day gifts are being prepared by local factories, enterprises, and farms, and are delivered directly to veterans through the corresponding Party committees,” the source said. “However, in the process of preparing these gifts, there are also appeals being made to ordinary residents for donations of cash money and goods that could serve as gifts.”
“In addition to this, various events such as meetings between veterans and students are also scheduled,” he said. “Although this year’s Victory Day is not a round-number anniversary, the authorities still seem to be putting considerable effort into it.”
Since Kim Jong-un’s rise to power as Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of North Korea, the state has provided food, clothing, and other gifts to war veterans annually on Victory Day. They are portrayed as “heroes who devoted themselves to the victory in the war,” with the state using this commemoration to instill loyalty to the regime and revolutionary unity across society.
This year’s Victory Day appears to follow suit, using the distribution of gifts both to honor the veterans’ sacrifices for the country and to reinforce the message that the state has not forgotten them and continues to care.
Kang is a reporter at NK Times, a Seoul-based media outlet focused on North Korean issues. He was born in 1978 in Chongjin and graduated from Chongjin 1st High School in North Korea. After 10 years of military service in the 4th Army Corps, he attended Chongjin Agricultural University before defecting.
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