KIM JONG IL
THE SONGUN-BASED REVOLUTIONARY LINE IS A GREAT REVOLUTIONARY LINE
OF OUR ERA AND AN EVER-VICTORIOUS BANNER OF OUR
REVOLUTION
Talk to the Senior Officials of the
Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea
January 29, Juche 92
(2003)
These days the Korean revolution, guided by
the Party, has been making a victorious advance under the banner of Songun.
Thanks to the Songun-based politics pursued
by our Party, the revolutionary armed forces have been incomparably
strengthened, the defence line of the homeland consolidated and a great change
effected in the revolution and construction.
By dint of Songun politics we have smashed
the anti-DPRK, anti-socialist machinations of the imperialists step by step,
defended the country and the revolution and exalted the dignity and prestige of
socialist Korea
in the eyes of the world.
The Songun-based politics of our Party is a
politics the invincibility of which has been verified through, severe historical
ordeals, and an all-powerful sword for victory in the revolution. It is an
invariable conviction and will of our Party to defend and carry forward by
force of arms the sacred revolutionary cause which was pioneered and has won
one victory after another by force of arms. The whole Party, the entire army
and all the people must wage a resolute struggle under the banner of Songun and
thus build a great, prosperous and powerful socialist nation, achieve national
reunification and accomplish the revolutionary cause of Juche.
Our Party’s Songun-based revolutionary
leadership, Songun-based politics, is a revolutionary mode of leadership and
socialist mode of politics that gives top priority to military affairs, and
defends the country, the revolution and socialism and dynamically pushes ahead
with overall socialist construction by dint of the revolutionary mettle and
combat capabilities of the People’s Army. The underlying aspects of Songun
politics are that military affairs are of paramount importance, that the army
is the hardcore and main force of the revolution, and that the army must be
strengthened in every way. The essential characteristic of Songun politics is
that it safeguards the security of the country and defends the revolutionary
gains by developing the People’s Army into invincible revolutionary armed
forces, and that it builds up the driving force of the revolution and deals
with all affairs of socialist construction in a revolutionary and militant way
with the People’s Army as the hard core and main force.
The idea and line of giving
importance to force of arms and military affairs, advanced and consistently
maintained by President Kim Il Sung, constitute the basis and
starting point of our Party’s Songun politics.
The struggle of the masses
of the people for the cause of independence, the cause of socialism, is
accompanied by confrontation of power with imperialism and all sorts of other
counterrevolutionary forces. Therefore, military affairs emerge as a matter of
key importance on which hangs victory or failure in the revolution and the rise
or fall of a country or a nation. A country or a nation can emerge victorious
in the revolution and defend the revolution, and carve out its destiny
independently only when it has its own powerful revolutionary armed forces.
It is the force of arms on
which hinge the victory of the revolutionary cause, independence and
sovereignty, and the prosperity of a country or a nation. This is the Juche-oriented
principle of revolution and the law of revolution, elucidated by President Kim
Il Sung and whose soundness has been verified by history.
President Kim Il Sung organized an armed unit
first in the early period of his revolutionary activities, achieved the
historic cause of national liberation by force of arms, and founded the Party
and the State afterwards. In each period and at each stage of the revolution
after the liberation, he always paid primary attention to military affairs and
constantly strengthened the revolutionary armed forces, and thus laid a solid
military guarantee for the victorious advance of the revolution and
construction.
Our Party’s Songun politics is a powerful
mode of politics of our era which was created by inheriting President Kim Il Sung’s idea and line of
attaching importance to arms and military affairs in general, and by developing
them in depth as required by the changing situation. By dint of Songun politics
we have been defending the President’s great military thoughts and immortal
exploits, further exalting them on a new and higher level, and opening a vista
for the victory of the Juche revolutionary cause. The new era of Juche
revolution is the Songun era and it is a new and higher stage of our revolution
which is developing under the banner of Songun.
The Songun revolutionary line, Songun
politics, is a scientific revolutionary line and mode of statesmanship that
most accurately reflect the demands of the times and the revolution.
Our Party started pursuing Songun politics on
the basis of its scientific analysis of the international circumstances of our
revolution and of the rapidly changing situation.
Entering the 1990s, socialism collapsed in
the former Soviet Union and the Eastern European
countries, giving rise to a great change in the world political structure and
balance of forces. Although the
imperialists’ mouthpieces and opportunists claimed that a new era of
“detente and peace’’ had arrived following the “end of the Cold War,” the world
can never exist in peace so long as imperialism remains rampant. By taking
advantage of the collapse of the global socialist system, the reactionary
imperialist forces intensified their offensive against the anti-imperialist
independent forces; in particular, the US imperialists, who had emerged as the
only superpower in the world, were more tenacious than ever in the pursuit of
their policy of aggression and war, in an attempt to realize their ambition of
world supremacy, wielding the power of authority and arbitrariness in the
international arena and violently encroaching upon the sovereignty of other
countries.
The reactionary imperialist
forces spearheaded their attack towards our Republic, which is advancing
constantly under the banner of independence, the banner of socialism. The US
imperialists and their followers pounced upon us in all directions, stepping up
their moves for military aggression on an unprecedented scale to destroy our
Republic by means of force on the one hand, and putting pressure to bear upon
us in all spheres of politics, the economy, ideology, culture and diplomacy on
the other to squeeze us dry.
Due to their anti-DPRK isolate-and-stifle
schemes, the Korean revolution came to face the severest trials and hardships
of its history; we had to bear the full brunt of the offensive of the
imperialist aggressive forces, in direct confrontation with the US
imperialists.
The showdown between us and
imperialism is a confrontation of power; the anti-imperialist military front
constituted the major front line, the first lifeline of our revolution, on which
the destiny of the country, the nation and socialism would be decided. We had
to strengthen and rely on the People’s Army by concentrating our efforts on
military affairs. In this way we were able to save the destiny of the country
and the nation, and lead the revolution and construction to victory. This is
the reason why we say the army means the Party, the State and the people. Had
we neglected military affairs and failed to strengthen the army, we might have
perished already, far from conducting the revolution and construction.
Our anti-imperialist, anti-US struggle is the
grimmest war to defend the country and a war in defence of socialism. It was
only the People’s Army, the revolutionary armed forces, that could perform its
mission and role as the standard-bearer of Songun politics. The Songun politics
of our Party embodies the high spirit of annihilating the enemy at all costs,
and the unshakable conviction and will to emerge victorious, on the part of the
People’s Army. It is entirely thanks to the heroic efforts of the entire army
and the whole nation in single-hearted unity with the People’s Army as its
core under the Party’s leadership that we could overcome the difficulties in
the way of revolution and win great victories.
The practical experience of our revolution
has proved that Songun politics, which gives precedence to military affairs and
regards the revolutionary armed forces as the pivot, is the most powerful mode
of politics of our era and revolution. Songun politics makes it possible to
defeat any enemy no matter how formidable, tide over any hardships and trials,
and guarantee the victorious advance of the revolutionary cause. The Songun
revolutionary line, Songun politics, is a strategic revolutionary line and mode
of politics that must be adhered to constantly so long as imperialism exists on
the earth and its aggressive machinations continue.
The Songun politics of our Party is a unique
socialist mode of politics that gives a new scientific clarification and
solution to the issue of the main force of the revolution.
On the basis of its deep analysis of the
development of the times and the changed social and class relations, our Party
put forward, for the first time in the history of the revolutionary movement,
the idea of “precedence of the army over the working class,” giving prominence
to the People’s Army as the core unit and main force of the revolution. The
originality of Songun politics and its invincibility lie in the fact that it
gives prominence to the People’s Army as the core unit and main force.
The preceding revolutionary theories of
Marxism viewed the working class as the main force of the revolution. Having
analysed the social and class relations in the Western capitalist countries in
the mid-19th century, Marx identified the working class as the most
advanced and revolutionary class entrusted with the mission of liquidating the
domination of capital and all sorts of exploitation, and building socialism and
communism, and defined it as the leading class and, the main force of the
revolution. This was the reflection of the reality of capitalist society in
those times. Later, socialist revolutions emerged victorious in several
countries of the world, and socialist construction got under way, with the
working class as the main force. As a result, it had been recognized as an
unbreakable revolutionary formula in carrying out the cause of socialism to
conduct the revolutionary struggle and construction work with the working class
as the core and the main force.
However, Marx’s theories and formulas, which
had been set forth one and a half centuries before, cannot accord with the
present reality. The times have advanced further, witnessing a great change in
social atmosphere, class relations and the status of the working class. With
the development of capitalism, especially with the rapid development of
science, and technology and the arrival of the IT age, the living basis of the
working class has been changed and work is being done on a more technological
and intellectual basis. The ranks of the working class have been
intellectualized and the working masses engaged in technical, intellectual and
mental labour are quickly outnumbering manual workers. Moreover, the
development of capitalism consolidates the domination of monopoly capital and
adds to the prevalence of reactionary bourgeois ideology and culture, which
greatly acts to control the class consciousness, awakening and revolutionary
assimilation of the working class. The working class of the present times
cannot be identified with the working class in the period of industrial
capitalism or proletarian revolution, in the fight of either the situation of
the times or the actual reality of the labour, social status and labour
movement of the working class. The changed situation and the reality require a
new ideology and theory, strategy and tactics with which to awaken and rally
the broad sections of the masses who oppose the domination of monopoly capital
and the aggression and war policy of imperialism, train hard-core elements
among them and expand and strengthen the revolutionary forces.
The limitations of Marxist revolutionary
theories were also manifested in a socialist society where the working masses,
including the working class, have become the masters of the State and society.
The preceding theories based on the materialistic conception of history
considered that the revolution is completed once the working class seizes power
and establishes socialist relations of production. For this reason, they failed
to make a correct clarification of the law-governed course of socialist
construction subsequent to victory in revolution; in particular, they failed to
raise the issue of remoulding man, the ideological revolution, in a socialist
society.
For the first time in history, President Kim Il Sung advanced the outstanding
idea that the course of building socialism and communism is, in view of the
class relations, the process of modelling the whole society on the
working-class pattern and gave scientific explanations of the role of the
working class, the development of class relations and the law governing the
remoulding of man in a socialist society.
Thanks to his original theory on building
socialism and under his wise leadership, the working class and other working
masses have been transformed into socialist workers in our country and they all
work and live basing themselves on the collectivist principle under the
socialist system. Our Party has firmly equipped the masses of the people with the Juche idea and
upgraded the process of transforming the whole of society on the revolutionary
and working-class patterns by giving definite precedence to the remoulding of
man, the ideological work, in the socialist cause. Thus it has brought about a
radical change in the socio-economic lives and politico-ideological traits of
our people. The Korean people are revolutionary and boundlessly faithful to the
Party and the revolution since they have been educated and trained in a
revolutionary way in the embrace of the socialist motherland under the guidance
of the Party and the leader. These days the masses of the people, who are
solidly united behind the Party and the leader with one mind and will, constitute a powerful driving force of
socialist construction in our society.
Needless to say, class differences still remain between the working
class and the cooperative farmers, and the revolutionary and working-class
assimilation of intellectuals cannot be said to have been completed. The
working class is as advanced a unit of our society as ever, and has a higher
sense of class consciousness, collectivism and revolution than other working
masses. Furthermore, it is still in charge of industry, the leading sector of the
national economy; especially the workers in the key industries and munitions
industry play a very important role in the revolution and construction. That is
why our Party treasures the working class and always pays deep concern to
further revolutionizing it and enhancing its role.
Applying Songun politics, our Party has given
prominence to the People’s Army over the working class, prompted by a new
viewpoint and attitude towards the issue of the main force of the revolution
and the role of a revolutionary army in the revolution and construction.
The question of the main force of the
revolution is one of the fundamental problems in strengthening the motive force
of the revolution and in developing the revolutionary movement by enhancing its
role. Which class, stratum or social collective becomes the main force of the
revolution is decided by its position and role in the revolution and
construction, its sense of revolution, organizational discipline, and combat
capabilities.
The question of the main force of the
revolution cannot remain invariable in any era, society or revolution, nor is
it a question that can be solved only on the basis of class relations. Hence,
regarding the working class as the main force of the revolution anytime and
anywhere is an expression of a dogmatic viewpoint toward the preceding theories
and is not correct in principle either.
Unfettered by any established theories or
formulas, out Party strictly rejected any expression of dogmatic attitude to
and revisionist distortion of the preceding theories, and strengthened the army
and upgraded its role as required by the development of the situation and the
revolution, thus leading the revolution and construction to victory.
For our Party to give prominence to the
People’s Army as the main force of the revolution is essential to the
accomplishment of the revolutionary cause of Juche, in view of the position and
role of the People’s Army in our revolution at present and in the light of its
revolutionary mettle and combat efficiency.
The People’s Army is the revolutionary ranks that defend the first
lifeline of our revolution. It defends the Party and the revolution, the
country and the people by force of arms and at the cost of life in direct
confrontation with the strong imperialist enemy. On the bayonets of the
People’s Army hinge peace, socialism and worthwhile and happy life of our
people.
This is the noble mission and the heaviest
yet most honourable revolutionary task of the People’s Army, for which neither
the working class nor any other social group can substitute.
The People’s Army is the most revolutionary,
militant and powerful revolutionary group in our society. No group is equal to
the People's Army in terms of the sense of revolution and organization and
combat efficiency.
Our People’s Army is unfailingly loyal to the
Party and the revolution and very strong in ideology and faith, and it is the
most organized combat unit. It defends the Party and the leader and carries out
the Party’s policies at all costs, and fights to the death for the cause of the
Party, the cause of socialism. The men and officers of the People’s Army, who
defend the country and the revolution by force of arms in the van, love their
country more dearly than anyone else, are eager to defend socialism and fight uncompromisingly
against imperialism and the class enemy with intense hatred. The People’s Army
is a revolutionary unit that brims over with revolutionary faith, iron will and
militant spirit. It is stronger than any other collective in the sense of collectivism,
organization, discipline and unity.
The entire army is single-heartedly united
behind its Supreme Commander, and moves as one under his command and directive;
it arranges all of its soldiers’ routine life and activities as required by
military rules and discipline. The collectivist principle and organization and
discipline have become the lifeblood and requirements of the routine life of
the People’s Army.
The high
sense of revolution and organization of the People’s Army is reflective of the
characteristics of the armed unit and the mettle unique to the revolutionary
army, and constitutes a basic factor of upgrading the combat efficiency of our
army and improving its politico-ideological might.
It is not that any army that
takes part in the revolution or any socialist army acquires the traits and
qualities befitting a revolutionary army and, moreover, can become the main
force of the revolution. The working class or the army can become a
revolutionary class or revolutionary armed forces and play an important
role in the revolution only when it is awakened and organized under the
leadership of a revolutionary party. Apart from the correct leadership of the
party and the leader, it is impossible to train any hardcore unit of the
revolution or to
awaken and rally the broad sections of the masses around the revolutionary
ranks.
Our People’s Army has grown up into genuine
revolutionary armed forces, an invincible army to perform its honourable
mission and duty with credit as the hardcore unit and main force of the
revolution, thanks to the leadership of President Kim Il Sung and the great Workers’ Party.
President Kim Il Sung built our People’s Army into a prototype of a
revolutionary army and laid eternal foundations for its development by
thoroughly applying the principles and ways he had put forward for the building
of Juche-type revolutionary armed forces. He built the People’s Army into an
army of the Party and the leader, a genuine army of the people, and developed
it as an armed unit of ideology and faith, possessed of all the
politico-ideological traits required of a revolutionary army. Under his wise
leadership an independent and modern munitions industry was created and so
developed as to serve as the material and technical foundations for the modernization of the entire
army. The imperishable exploit he performed for the building of the armed
forces is the most valuable of his revolutionary achievements and it is now
proving its worth as the solid foundation and priceless asset for our Party to
further strengthen the People’s Army and pursue Songun politics.
On the basis of his great achievements in
army building, our Party gave prominence to the People’s Army as the
standard-bearer and main force of Songun-based revolution, and directed all its
efforts to upgrading it. Through the continuous field inspections of the units
of the People’s Army, our Party always went deep among the servicepersons and
took care of them with love and trust. It strengthened the army through
revolutionary education and training by decisively intensifying Party political
work within the army and unsparingly supplied everything necessary for the
army. The Party took revolutionary measures to firmly equip the People’s Army
with our own unique strategy and tactics, and radically improve its military
and technical preparedness as required by the characteristics of modern warfare
and tense situations. Our Party’s energetic guidance has given rise to a fresh
turn in the politico-ideological traits and fighting spirit of the People’s Army,
making its combat efficiency and might better than ever before. Being an army
of the Party and the leader and an army of the Supreme Commander, in name and
in reality, our People’s Army has grown up to be revolutionary ranks of
loyalists full of the spirit of defending the leadership of the revolution at
all costs, and the entire army from the Supreme Commander to the rank and file
has formed a harmonious whole on the basis of revolutionary comradeship. The
Party’s leadership over the army has its firm place within the People’s Army, a
revolutionary and military spirit prevails in the entire army, and the good
traits of unity between superiors and subordinates, between officers and rank
and file and between commanding officers and political officers are manifesting
themselves to the full within the army.
The noble politico-ideological traits,
revolutionary spirit and fighting mettle of the People’s Army are expressed in
a concentrated way in the revolutionary soldier spirit. The revolutionary
soldier spirit, which was created and has been given full play within the
People’s Army under the leadership of the Party, is the lofty revolutionary
spirit of our army, characterized mainly by a spirit of defending the leader at
the risk of one’s life, a spirit of carrying out tasks at all costs, and a
heroic self-sacrificing spirit. It is a death-defying spirit with which the
soldiers of the People’s Army fight for the Party and the leader, for the
country and revolution at the cost of their youth and lives; it is a
revolutionary spirit of sure victory, a spirit of confronting any enemy no
matter how formidable head-on and breaking through any difficulties and trials.
The revolutionary soldier spirit of the
People’s Army is a noble revolutionary spirit symbolic and representative of
the great Songun era. And it constitutes the most revolutionary and militant
ideological and spiritual weapon, which makes it possible to create miracles
and perform meritorious deeds in the course of the revolution and construction.
In the Songun era the working class, too, can perform its class duty and
mission only when it is equipped with the revolutionary soldier spirit, and all
the other working people can maintain and add luster to their honour of being
the masters of the State and society, their honour of being the socialist
working masses, only when they learn from the revolutionary soldier spirit.
When the entire army and all the people live and struggle with the
revolutionary soldier spirit and fighting spirit, united single-heartedly
behind the Party, there will be no enemy in the world strong enough to resist
us and no fortress we cannot conquer.
Since our People’s Army is the creator,
personifier and pioneer of the revolutionary soldier spirit representative of
the times and the most powerful combat unit that defends the first lifeline of
our revolution, it is the standard-bearer, hardcore unit and the main force of
the Songun revolution and, has been exalting the honour to a high degree.
Songun politics, which gives prominence to
the People’s Army as its main force, makes it possible to firmly maintain and
apply to the letter the fundamental ideals and the basic principles of the
revolution. Socialism is the fundamental ideal of our revolution to realize the
independence of the masses of the people, and socialist society is a society
which embodies the class demands and aspirations of the working class. Apart
from the intrinsic desire and class principle of the working class, it is
impossible to realize the independence of the masses of the people and complete
the socialist cause. We are striving to build a great, prosperous and powerful
socialist nation and reunify the country in the midst of a severe class
struggle against the US
imperialists and other enemies. The complex and grave situation of our
revolution demands that the edge of class struggle be sharpened and the
working-class principle, the revolutionary principle, be maintained more
thoroughly in all spheres. Our Party has upheld the banner of Songun in the
acute confrontation with imperialism. Our rifle is the rifle of class, the
rifle of revolution, and it is the most powerful weapon for anti-imperialist
class struggle. The revolutionary soldier spirit of the People’s Army is the
highest expression of class consciousness and the revolutionary spirit of the
working class. Today our Party is totally serious and uncompromising about its
demand for adherence to the class principle, the revolutionary principle, in
all spheres of the revolution and construction and for farther intensification
of class education and revolutionary education among the soldiers and the
people, as required by the Songun era. When our army and people are firmly
equipped with a high level of class consciousness and the revolutionary soldier
spirit in support of the Party’s Songun-based leadership, the socialist class
position will be further cemented, and the socialist cause will be defended
and, completed with victory under any circumstances.
The Songun politics of our Party is the most
powerful and dignified politics of independence which embodies the Juche idea.
Independence is the life and soul of a social being, the masses of the people, a
country and a nation. The man-centred Juche idea is an idea of independence,
and all revolutionary struggles are ones for independence. The Juche idea
correctly combines love for the masses of the people with that for the country
and the nation, and the independence of the masses of the people with that of
the country and the nation, and scientifically elucidates the ways for its
realization. The politics that defends and realizes the independence of the
masses of the people, the country and the nation on the basis of the
fundamentals and principles of the Juche idea is the most revolutionary and
scientific politics, and it also constitutes genuine politics of love for the
country, the nation and the people.
Our Songun politics that relies on the
invincible revolutionary armed forces is a principled and righteous politics of
anti-imperialist independence and politics of love for the country, the nation
and the people, the politics which reliably defends and guarantees the
independent demands and interests of the masses of the people, and the
sovereignty and dignity of the country and the people from infringement by the
imperialist reactionaries. As self-defensive revolutionary armed forces, our
People’s Army is defending by force of arms the dignity of our Party and
revolution, our ideology and system and our country and people, smashing the
enemy’s war provocations and safeguarding the security and peace of the
country. Thanks to Songun politics we are conducting the revolution and
construction fair and square in our own way and as suited to the reality of our
country and the interests of our revolution, and according to our own ideology
and faith, holding up the banner of independence in spite of such complicated
and acute situation as today. It is because we have strong military power and
an ever-victorious strategy and tactics that we are firmly maintaining the independent
principles in politics, resolutely rejecting all manner of outside interference
and pressure, and pushing ahead with all our endeavours boldly as we intend,
unfettered by anything.
Thanks to Songun politics, our independence
remains firmly guaranteed and our socialist motherland is demonstrating its
dignity and honour, authority and might as a fortress of independence. Our
Party’s Songun politics is literally a politics for the people and a politics
geared to defending and ensuring the independent rights and fundamental
interests of the masses of the people. For this reason, the entire people
support it absolutely and uphold it with loyalty. The unfurled banner of Songun
upheld by our Party has become a great national banner inspiring the consciousness
of national independence, self-respect and sense of national pride and honour
among the fellow countrymen in the north, south and abroad, and opening up the
road to the national reunification and prosperity.
Our Party’s Songun idea, Songun politics, has
proved its validity, superiority and great vitality, and is demonstrating them
all the more with each passing day in the practice and reality of our
revolution.
First of all, the military position of our
revolution has been fortified impregnably under the Party’s Songun-based
leadership.
The military might of the country constitutes
the foremost rational power in the struggle for independence and socialism and
against imperialism. If one defeats the enemy on the military front one will
emerge victorious on all other fronts.
Our People’s Army has grown up to be
invincible revolutionary armed forces, and our socialist motherland has emerged
as a military power in the international arena. We have won one victory after
another in the fierce political and military showdown with the imperialists,
and defended the country, the revolution and socialism from all manner of
aggressive machinations of the enemy.
The distinguished successes and achievements
we have made in the military field are precisely the great victory of our
Party’s Songun-based leadership, Songun politics, and clear manifestation of
its validity and might. The military position of the revolution that has been
cemented into an impregnable fortress, with the People’s Army as the core,
thanks to our Party’s Songun-based leadership serves as a basic guarantee for
the completion of the Juche revolutionary cause.
Our revolutionary ranks have been united more
solidly than ever and the single-hearted unity of our whole society has been
further strengthened in the Songun era.
Today the People’s Army and the people have
forged a genuine comradely relationship whereby they share weal and woe on the
road of Songun-based revolution under the leadership of the Party, and the
whole society is brimming over with the beautiful trait of unity between the
army and the people. The servicepersons are serving the people with devotion
while the latter are taking loving care of the former as their own flesh and
blood, assisting them with all sincerity, and devotedly learning from the
revolutionary soldier spirit and fighting spirit of the People’s Army. As a
result, both the servicepersons and the people share the same idea and fighting
spirit. In the Songun era the People’s Army is playing a pivotal, vanguard role
in all spheres of the revolution and construction, while the people are
treasuring the former above all else, and displaying the trait of supporting
and assisting the army, resulting in further solidity of comradely
unity between the army and the people.
As
a result of our Party’s Songun-based
leadership and politics of love for the soldiers and the people, the
single-hearted unity of our society has been upgraded to a
single-hearted unity of
the whole Party, the whole army and the whole nation based on one
ideology and
faith, and comradely love and obligation. Furthermore, the
politico-ideological
might of our revolution has been further strengthened to an incomparable
degree.
The great viability of Songun politics has
been confirmed in the process of socialist construction.
As the main force of the revolution, the
People’s Army stands in the van in all spheres of socialist construction and
has been performing labour feats, setting a shining example. The officers and
men of the People’s Army have erected numerous monumental edifices and modern
factories through their heroic struggle in full support of the Party’s idea and
policies, and made breakthroughs in the difficult yet important sectors of the
national economy. They were the first to overcome manifold hardships and trials
and created miracles and brought about innovations in all spheres, thus
inspiring the working masses throughout the country to a revolutionary upsurge.
Taking
their cue from the revolutionary soldier spirit and the fighting spirit of the
People’s Army, the working class and other working masses created the Kanggye
spirit and kindled the torch of Ranam, bringing about a sweeping innovation in
overall socialist construction. By dint of Songun politics relying on the
People’s Army as the main force, we were able to endure the severest “Arduous
March” and the forced march, open up a road towards building a great,
prosperous and powerful socialist nation and push forward with the revolution
and construction in a bold and positive way despite the difficult situation.
Our experience shows that if all the officials and the working people uphold
the Party’s Songun-based leadership and work as the People’s Army does, it is
possible to conquer the fortress of cutting-edge science and technology, build
an economic power, establish an assiduous manner in the management of
livelihood and a noble way of cultural and emotional life throughout society,
and provide our people with affluent lives in a short period of time.
Our Party’s Songun politics has registered a
turning-point in the cause of national reunification, furthered the
international solidarity with our revolution and radically expanded the
external relations of the country.
Songun politics, which is imbued with the
principle of national independence and the spirit of love for the country and
the people, our policies for national reunification based on it and our
positive efforts gave rise to the historic Pyongyang summit, followed by the
adoption of the June 15 North-South Joint Declaration, and the further
development of inter-Korean relations of reconciliation and cooperation in
several sectors. The trend of struggle against the US
and other foreign forces and for independent national reunification is mounting
to a crescendo on an unprecedented scale in south Korea.
Songun politics, which
opposes imperialist aggression and war policies and defends the independence of
the country and the nation, is winning broad support among public circles and
the progressive peoples of the world. It gives a blow to the aggressive forces of
imperialism and encouragement to the anti-imperialist independent forces in the
international arena, stimulating the cause of making the whole world
independent.
Upholding the banner of
Songun under the leadership of the great Party, our army and people have
traversed a glorious road of victory, pushing their way through raging storms
and creating miracles in history. The Songun-based revolutionary line of our
Party is a great revolutionary line of our era and an ever-victorious banner of
our revolution. In the Songun-based revolution lie the building of a great,
prosperous and powerful nation, national reunification and the victory of the
revolutionary cause of Juche. Now that the situation is very complicated and
tense at home and abroad, we must hold the banner of Songun higher. The whole
Party, the entire army and all the people must advance more resolutely towards
a new great victory of our revolution in support of the Party’s Songun-based
leadership.
First of all, great efforts should be
directed continually at strengthening the People’s Army. The might of Songun
politics is precisely the might of the People’s Army; its superiority and might
can be given full play only when the People’s Army is soundly prepared politically
and ideologically, militarily and technically.
The Party’s leadership is the lifeblood of
the People’s Army. Our People’s Army should be strengthened as the first
defender of the Party, as the revolutionary armed unit that fights to the death
in support of the Party’s idea and leadership, so that it can inherit and add
luster to its glorious history and tradition as the army of the Party and the leader. The more complex and
tenser the situation is, the more efforts should be made to intensify
politico-ideological education and military training within the People’s Army
so that all the servicepersons trust and follow only our Party under any
circumstances and conditions, heighten their revolutionary vigilance and
maintain their preparedness. The People’s Army should be fully ready to
mercilessly annihilate the imperialist aggressors whenever and wherever they
attack.
The politico-ideological
and military positions of our .revolution must be fortified rock-solid by
firming up single-hearted unity of the army and the people. There is nothing
to fear or impossible to do when the army and the people fight with
single-hearted unity under the Party’s leadership. The tradition of army-people
unity-both treasuring and loving each other and sharing weal and woe-should be
given farther play in the Songun era.
It is important to establish a sound habit,
of attaching importance to military affairs throughout society.
The work of consolidating the defence
capabilities of the country is an undertaking shared by the entire Party, the
whole country and all the people. Our officials and working masses must
organize and conduct all work on the principle of giving precedence to military
affairs, and make energetic efforts to build up the military might of the
country, in addition, the paramilitary forces must be strengthened and the
whole country turned into a solid fortress.
It is imperative to
expedite overall economic construction while giving precedence to the defence
industry, as required by the Songun era, so as to support the Party’s Songun
politics both materially and technologically, and radically improve the
people’s living standards in a short period of time.
All the
officials and working people must cherish the validity and invincibility of the
Party’s Songun idea, Songun politics, as their unshakable faith, work and live
as required by it at all times and strive to make the whole society overflow
with such revolutionary mettle and militant spirit as can be found only in the
People’s Army.
Our People’s Army and people have burnished the new era of the Juche
revolution as a great Songun era under the leadership of the Party. We will
victoriously advance the revolutionary cause of Juche and bring it to
completion under the banner of Songun.
All the officials, Party
members and other working people must become ardent followers of the Songun
idea and staunch defenders and implementers of Songun politics, and loyally uphold
our Party’s Songun-based revolutionary leadership.