for the international progressive movement

The importance of the Juche Idea for the international progressive movement stands out especially in the comparison of the history of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the former socialist states, in which there was a counter-revolution and the restoration of capitalism.

Such a comparison also explains how Korean socialism could be defended in the most difficult years of the intensified reactionary offensive after the fall of the world socialist camp.

The power of Korean socialism is secured primarily by unanimous unity, assured by the great leader Comrade Kim Il Sung, and the great leader Comrade Kim Jong Il, under whose leadership all factional and hostile forces throughout the party and society have been crushed. In contrast, the former socialist states paid dearly for the presence of counter-revolutionaries even in the leadership of the former ruling parties, who became the main internal force for the renewal of capitalism.

Political independence and the pursuit of economic self-sufficiency have been and continue to be crucial to the defense and development of socialist Korea. The Workers' Party of Korea rejected the worship of great powers and did not accept the imposition of a political line from abroad. Thanks to this, it resisted opportunism and revisionism, which gradually prevailed in the international communist and workers' movement from the mid-1950s. It did not allow the denigration of revolutionary traditions and the disgrace of past revolutionary leaders, which ideologically disarmed especially the states of the Soviet bloc, but also a large part of the workers' movement in the capitalist states.

From the beginning, the policy of the glorious leadership of the Workers' Party of Korea has been based on the idea of collectivism. This has recently been reflected in successes in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, in stark contrast to, for example, the situation in the Czech Republic, where after more than 30 years of promoting the egoistic concept of "freedom and democracy" regardless of others, there is ruthlessness, widespread violation of extraordinary measures and the country is one of the most affected in the world. The result is 1.3 million infected and 21,000 dead per year of the pandemic.

Politics of the Juche Idea is based on the conscious support of the masses of the people, not formal obedience. Through a rigorous cultural revolution, it was able to truly win the minds and hearts of the people for the cause of socialism. At first glance, the difference is evident by comparing the culture of the people's Korea with the culture of the former socialist states, especially before their fall in the 1980s, but also by comparing Korean mass events with those in states before the counter-revolution. No one who has seen such rallies in the DPRK with their own eyes can honestly claim that their enthusiastic and militant atmosphere is feigned or forced.

The Workers' Party of Korea prevented the infiltration of bourgeois decadence and ideological poisoning into the society of the liberated northern half of Korea, despite the continuing tragedy of national division and the cultural corruption of the occupied south. On the contrary, the revolution is consistently passed down from generation to generation. Much attention has been paid in recent years to the fight against hostile cultural infiltration and the care of the young generation under the leadership of respected Comrade Kim Jong Un, as evidenced by the conclusions of the 7th and 8th party congresses, plenary sessions of the Central Committee and Politburo, and a recent seminar for the Chief Secretaries. They also show that another big difference between the DPRK and most defeated socialist states is the resolute fight against bureaucratization and corruption, against the party's secession from the people.

All this is made possible by the legacy of the immortal merits of the great leader Comrade Kim Il Sung and the great leader Comrade Kim Jong Il, whose ideas the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un called great Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism.

As an activist of the communist movement and the organization of friendship with Korea, I met several comrades who had the honor of being personally received by the great leader Comrade Kim Il Sung. They all remembered his extraordinary personality, his cordiality and sincerity, which left a deep impression on them forever.

Thanks to the kind care of Korean comrades, our friendship delegations were able to honor the memory of the great leaders at the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun several times and attend several mass rallies in the presence of respected Comrade Kim Jong Un.

It is a commitment for us to continue working for the cause of revolution and friendship with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, which, even in the most difficult circumstances, continues to hold the red banner of socialism.

Lukáš Vrobel,

1st Vice-Chairman of the Paektusan Czech-Korean Friendship Association

and the Czech Group for the Study and Materialization of the Juche Idea,

holder of the Order of Friendship of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea