Body of former N.K. premier buried at national cemetery 15 years after death

SEOUL, Sept. 17 (Yonhap) -- The body of a former North Korean premier was buried belatedly at a national cemetery in Pyongyang about 15 years after he died, state media reported Friday.

The body of Kang Song-san, who served as prime minister twice from 1984-1986 and from 1992-1997, was enshrined in the Sinmiri national cemetery, according to the Korean Central News Agency.

"A ceremony was held for the burial of bodies of patriots on Thursday at the Sinmiri cemetery," the KCNA said. "Among them were Comrade Kang Song-san, who devoted himself in the fight for the fatherland and people."

Kang died in 2007, but his body had not been buried at the cemetery amid speculation that it might have to do with Kang Myong-do, his son-in-law, who defected to South Korea in May 1994.

Despite his son-in-law's defection, Kang maintained the premier post and also served as a member of the funeral preparation committee for Kim Il-sung, the North's state founder, when he died in July 1994.

Kang, however, was dismissed from prime minister in 1997, years after Kim Jong-il, the son of the state founder, took office.

kokobj@yna.co.kr
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