Order of the National Flag

The Order of the National Flag is the second highest  order of North Korea, after the Order of Kim Il-sung and the Order of Kim Jong-il.

It is the oldest order in the country, having been established in 1948, just six weeks after the North Korean state was founded.

The order is awarded to both individuals and organizations, for political, cultural or economic work. The order, which comes in three classes, is automatically conferred upon recipients of the titles of and  and various "People's" honorary titles. The Order of the National Flag is also awarded to recipients of the Order of Freedom and Independence and  in the appropriate class. Recipients are entitled to benefits such as a salary or free public transport.

Domestic recipients include both leaders Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il and other notables. Foreign recipients include politicians such as Fidel Castro, Hosni Mubarak and Siad Barre.

History
When the order was instituted on 12 October 1948, six weeks after the foundation of the North Korean state, it was the first and highest order of the country.

Eligibility
It can be awarded to individuals and to organizations or workplaces for achievements in military service or political, cultural, or economic work. It is also awarded to officers of the Workers' Party of Korea for longstanding service (25 years for the first class, 20 years for the second class and 15 years for the third class).

Those who are awarded the title of or  are always awarded with the Order of the National Flag as well, as are laureates of "People's" honorary titles. Recipients of the Order of Freedom and Independence receive the Order of the National Flag of the same class, but recipients receive the Order of the National Flag in a lower class. Recipients have the right to use public transport free of charge. Disabled and retired recipients receive an annual salary along the order.

Precedence
The Order of the National Flag is the second highest order of North Korea, after the Order of Kim Il-sung and the Order of Kim Jong-il, which share the first place. The order has three classes.

North Korean recipients

 * Kim Il-sung (6 February 1951, first class; 1953, first class )
 * Han Sorya (26 April 1951, second class)
 * Im Hwa (26 April 1951, second class)
 * Cho Ki-chon (26 April 1951, second class)
 * Ri Ki-yong (26 April 1951, second class)
 * Yi T'aejun (26 April 1951, second class)
 * Kim Chogyu (26 April 1951, third class)
 * Pak Unggŏl (26 April 1951, third class)
 * Shin Kosong (26 April 1951, third class)
 * Pak Chong-ae (July 1953, second class; first class)
 * Jang Chol (August 1961, first class)
 * Ri Tu-il (June 1968, first class)
 * Kim Ryong-yong (January 1976, first class)
 * Choe Sam-suk (1982, first class)
 * Kim Jong-il (1982, first class)
 * Jong Chang-ryol (June 1986, first class)
 * Kim Su-jo (October 1989, first class)
 * Paek Hak-rim (April 1997, first class)
 * Ri Ul-sol (April 1997, first class)
 * O Ik-je (September 1997, first class)
 * Jon Pyong-ho (February 1998, first class)
 * Ryu Mi-yong (January 1991, first class)
 * Han Duk-su (first class ten times)
 * Hyon Yong-chol (eight times first class, five times second class, and twice third class)
 * Jo Myong-rok (first class)
 * Kim Jung-rin (first class)
 * Lee Kwon-mu (first class)
 * Ri Jong-ok (first class)
 * At the beginning of 2010, North Korean media announced that the Order of the National Flag, first class, was posthumously awarded to the captain and first mechanics of the freighter that sunk in November 2009 by the Chinese city of Dalian. The crew attempted to salvage the ship's portraits of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il.
 * Pyongyang University of Music and Dance (first class)

Foreign recipients

 * Peng Dehuai (China, 1951 and 1953, first class)
 * Nureddin al-Atassi (Syria, September 1969, first class)
 * Siad Barre (Democratic Republic of Somalia, 1972, first class)
 * Samora Machel (Mozambique, March 1975, first class)
 * Juvénal Habyarimana (Rwanda, 1978, first class)
 * Choi Eun-hee (South Korea, 1983, first class)
 * Hosni Mubarak (Egypt, 1983, first class)
 * Sam Nujoma (Namibia, 1992)
 * Fidel Castro (Cuba, 2006, first class)
 * Józef Borowiec, former director of the National Center of Education in, Poland
 * Yakov Novichenko (USSR)
 * Alejandro Cao de Benós de Les y Pérez (Spain)
 * Ra Hun, Korean minority activist in Japan (first class, second class, and twice third class)
 * Megawati Sukarnoputri (Indonesia, first class)