The official daily of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Tuesday praised China's relief efforts following the devastating earthquake that hit the country's southwest region in May.

An article in the Minju Joson spoke highly of the Chinese government's swift measures to accord priority to guaranteeing people's livelihoods, noting that the whole of China has been mobilized for relief efforts.

Among measures it lauded were the Chinese authorities' mobilization of large quantities of food, drinking water, medicines and tents for the quake-hit region, the efforts by public health departments to prevent epidemic outbreaks and the submission of special party membership dues by the members of the Communist Party of China to help quake victims.

The joint efforts of the Chinese government and people have led to a steady improvement in conditions in the disaster-hit region, the newspaper said.

A devastating earthquake measuring 8.0 on the Richter scale hit China's southwest region on May 12, leaving about 70,000 people dead, 374,000 injured and 18,000 missing.

(Xinhua News Agency July 29, 2008)