Life of Comrade Kim Il Sung

Ramon Jimenez Lopez

Director-general, IIJI

Life of Comrade Kim Il Sung is run through with distinguished services, heroism and boundless love for the country, the people and mankind.

There are many of his works and many stories about his life we should convey through generations.

In his report made at the meeting of leading personnel of the Young Communist League and the Anti-imperialist Youth League held on June 30, 1930, Comrade Kim Il Sung noted that the young communists in Korea were faced with the important task of leading the Korean revolution along the right path to meet the prevailing situations and that the Japanese imperialists further intensified their colonial suppression and plunder of Korea.

The circumstances created in Korea 90 years ago were same in case of the people in all countries of the world under the influence of neo-liberalism. Though some of the countries were not occupied militarily, the people in each country, as said by Comrade Kim Il Sung, should lead their struggle in conformity with the requirement of the prevailing situation. In case of Latin America, plunder by neo-liberalism was further intensified. In particular, in Mexico, the neo-liberal governments handed over 120 000 000 hectares of deposit covering 60% of the territory. Mexico made contracts of developing and exploiting oil with private companies, especially with foreign ones, thus impairing severely the sovereignty and self-respect of the country.

Accordingly, it had to import 85% of gas and diesel oil in the period of neo-liberalism. 11 years ago, the state-run companies in the sector of electric power produced 150% of electricity, whereas the current state-run companies produce only 54% of all the electricity demanded by the state. In the past, Mexico was self-sufficient in the production of corn and other cereals. However, it imports almost 90% of rice, 45% of pea and nearly 50% of corn at present. Such phenomenon is being altered as required by the prevailing situation and the Mexican president declared that Mexico is no longer the land to be plundered. In Bolivia, the imperialists and the former minority party government effected a coup in order to weaken strength of the state and control the mineral, lithium and other natural resources.

Greed of imperialism can be found also in Venezuela. The imperialists froze the gold resources of Venezuela, the public finance of its state-run companies and the Venezuelan state-run refining companies in the US in order to bring into submission the Venezuelan government standing on the side of the people who are to build socialism in the 21 st century. All these were performed by the one in the guise of president. Same is the case in other countries.

As said by Comrade Kim Il Sung, people in each country fought against the imperialist plunder in consideration of history and actual circumstances of their country as required by the prevailing situation, and constantly and fully displayed their independence, creativity and consciousness as required by the Juche idea.

The strategy advanced by Comrade Kim Il Sung in the Korean people’s struggle for independence is, in essence, the strategy which the Latin American people should apply in order to defeat the imperialists and the national minority party political forces within the present framework of neo-liberalism. In Bolivia, Argentina, Venezuela and Mexico, the democratic and patriotic forces and those against neo-liberalism and the minority party government emerged victorious and switched over from representative democracy to participated democracy, the sign of people’s democracy. The masses of the people want to carve out their own destiny and build an independent country.

Without doubt, all these facts enable us to create a current of global peace and settle international issues while respecting sovereignty, dignity and innocence. They also want to solve their problems not by war but by political dialogue and negotiation.

We should keep in mind Comrade Kim Il Sung’s proposition that human history is history of the popular masses’ struggle for independence. That is why we who greet the birth anniversary of Comrade Kim Il Sung should push ahead with the study and dissemination of fundamental principles of the Juche idea that have great influence and vitality still now though it was founded nearly over 90 years ago.

Our struggle is also to fight against oppressors within and without. At the time when the Juche idea was founded, the struggle of the Korean people was to be against Japanese imperialism, landlords, capitalists and traitors to the nation. Today our struggle is to be against imperialism of neo-liberalism(neo-liberal globalization) and its tools such as IMF, WB and the Inter-American Development Bank, the national minority party governments and all those encircled by corruption.

Comrade Kim Il Sung proved the Koreans’ true merits to the US imperialists on the strength of dignity, sovereignty, independence and love for the people. The world strongest US imperialists armed with atomic bomb were defeated in the Korean War for the first time in its history. The US Army general Mark Clark confessed in his reminiscences that he was dishonored to sign the armistice agreement without victory for the first time in the US history. His confession gave passion and deep emotion to all the honest and tender-hearted people in the world. His confession is now giving strength and courage to the struggle of present generations and the people for independence. The Korean people’s victory in the Fatherland Liberation War proved that one is unconquerable when one struggles for independence with his destiny in his hands.

In the early 1990s, Comrade Kim Il Sung reliably safeguarded socialism. At that time, the Berlin Wall was collapsed, the socialist bloc and the USSR were dissolved and many leftist groups and parties were disintegrated without any morale and hope. This gave stimulus to the imperialist thinkers and propagators in pseudo political parties. The pseudo publishers advocated the end of history and socialism. Under such circumstances, all countries, except Cuba and the DPRK, who suffered from vicious economic blockades and political isolations, plunged into the market economy.

With the Juche idea, Comrade Kim Il Sung adhered to the independence in politics, self-sufficiency in the economy and self-reliance in national defence. Such activities of Comrade Kim Il Sung, which remain still in the minds of millions of people, made them keep encouragement in the struggle for socialism.

At an interview with the editor-in-chief of the Yugoslav newspaper on June 24, 1989, Comrade Kim Il Sung said.

“We conceived the Juche idea in the course of blazing the trail of our Korean revolution independently by applying the revolutionary principles of Marxism-Leninism to the situation in our country.

The Juche idea, the guiding ideology of our Party, elucidates the principles of the revolution by centring on the popular masses. In other words, the Juche idea is a revolutionary ideology which shows the way for the popular masses, the masters of the revolution and construction, to shape their own destiny by their own efforts.

Guided by the Juche idea and relying on the revolutionary enthusiasm and creative force of the masses, we have successfully carried out social revolutions at various stages and pressed on with socialist construction. In a short span of time we have converted our country, once an underdeveloped, colonial, semi-feudal society, into a socialist country which is independent in politics, self-sufficient in economy and self-reliant in national defence; we have developed it into a genuinely popular state in which all members of society lead independent and creative lives, helping and leading each other forward. The victorious advance made by our revolution unequivocally proves the validity and truth of the Juche idea.

Although the Juche idea has been evolved by us on the basis of our people’s experience of struggle in order to meet the practical requirements of the Korean revolution, it enjoys widespread support and sympathy from people all over the world. I think this is because the Juche idea conforms with the trend of the present time towards independence in opposition to all manner of domination and subordination and with the desire of the people of our era to shape their own destiny.

Revolutionary ideas develop with the advance of time and the development of the revolutionary movement. We can say the same applies to the Juche idea of our Party.”

Comrade Kim Il Sung founded the Juche idea in Kalun at the age of 18 and developed in rich it till the age of 82.

Comrade Kim Jong Un has turned the DPRK, the valuable creation of the Juche idea, into a nuclear power, a missile power that no country in the world can provoke militarily and into a socialist powerful country where its people lead delightful and creative life in good health.

Eternal glory to Comrade Kim Il Sung!