Library:Report to the 7th Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea on the work of the Central Committee

Report to the Seventh Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea on the work of the Central Committee
Source	Korean Books

Dear comrades,

The decades since the Sixth Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea have been a period of the most severe struggle and a glorious era of victory when a great turn has been brought about in the long history of our Party.

During the period under review, in circumstances of unprecedented harshness, the Workers’ Party of Korea put forward Juche-oriented lines and policies at every stage of the revolution. It advanced the revolution and construction dynamically by relying on our great people, and thus achieved brilliant victories in implementing the cause of socialism and ushered in a new era of national prosperity. In following an arduous and thorny path of revolution that has never been trodden by any other party or people in history, our Party has been firmly convinced of the validity and invincibility of its ideology and cause, and our people have hardened their will and resolve to advance for ever along the road of Juche indicated by the Party.

Today, our Party members and all other people are celebrating the Seventh Party Congress, with indelible memories of the proud exploits they have performed on the strength of their indomitable spirit and through a heroic struggle, and with great pride in being victors. The Seventh Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea will be a historic watershed in further strengthening our Party, stepping up the building of a powerful socialist country and hastening the final victory of the Juche revolution, all of which will be achieved by holding aloft the banner of modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism.

The great victory of the Juche idea and Songun politics

Comrades,

During the period under review the Workers’ Party of Korea, holding fast to the banner of the great Juche idea and the Songun-based revolutionary line, mobilized Party members and all other people to carry out the cause of the Juche revolution.

The Juche idea served as the ever-victorious banner guiding our revolution along the road of Juche in the face of worldwide political upheavals and manifold hardships, and Songun politics served as the priceless sword of victory enabling our Party and people to perform miracles of history in overcoming the severe difficulties.

Thanks to the great Juche idea and Songun politics of the Workers’ Party of Korea and the devoted struggle of our service personnel and other people who are unfailingly loyal to the Party, proud victories have been achieved in socialist construction and lasting foundations for accomplishing the cause of the Juche revolution have been laid.

The struggle for the victorious advance of the socialist cause

Comrades,

Socialism is a sacred cause for realizing the demand and desire of the masses of the people for independence; it is a revolutionary cause that advances amid a fierce struggle against imperialism and all other counterrevolutionary forces.

During the period under review the Workers’ Party of Korea, in the face of ordeals and hardships that were more trying than anything it had ever encountered before, waged a struggle to advance the socialist cause.

The Sixth Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea was a historic milestone in building up the political, military and economic strength of our revolution and victoriously advancing the socialist cause by transforming all aspects of social life in conformity with the requirements of the Juche idea, holding aloft the banner of modelling the whole society on the Juche idea.

Our Party, by pushing ahead with the efforts to model the whole Party and the entire army on the Juche idea and make all members of society revolutionary, working-class and intellectual in line with the programme, put forward by the Sixth Party Congress, of modelling the whole society on this idea, strengthened the motive force of the socialist cause. It held fast to the strategic line of putting the national economy on a Juche-oriented, modern and scientific footing and mobilized the people in the effort to implement it. In this way great progress was made in attaining the ten long-term objectives for socialist economic construction. The brilliant victories and successes achieved by our Party in the struggle to implement the decisions of the Sixth Party Congress amid the fierce flames of the movement for creating the speed of the 1980s, created a solid foundation on which full play could be given to the advantages of socialism and the complete victory of socialism could be hastened.

The struggle of our Party and people to achieve the complete victory of socialism under the banner of modelling the whole society on the Juche idea was confronted with a grave challenge when the anti-socialist and counterrevolutionary whirlwind blew across the world at the end of the last century.

In the international arena socialism collapsed in one country after another owing to the manoeuvres of the imperialists and renegades of socialism. Taking underhand advantage of this tragic turn of events, the imperialists concentrated their anti-socialist offensive against our country, the bulwark of socialism. They resorted to vicious schemes in trying to stifle our socialism in all fields of politics, military affairs, the economy, ideology and culture.

To cope with this grave situation the Workers’ Party of Korea organized and conducted a daring struggle to defend and advance the socialist cause with a resolute determination to smash the imperialists’ counterrevolutionary offensive by means of a revolutionary offensive.

Through the revolutionary ideological offensive our Party succeeded in safeguarding the socialist ideology and ideals from the imperialists’ onslaught and abuse and in firmly consolidating our politico-ideological position. In the face of the adverse wind that brought the collapse of socialism and the anti-socialist ideological trend, it demonstrated scientifically and theoretically that socialism represents the people’s ideal of independence and justice, and that its triumph is inevitable. It thereby instilled confidence in socialism into the people and dealt a telling blow to the imperialists and reactionaries who had been clamouring about the “end” of socialism.

We intensified politico-ideological education among Party members and other working people to ensure that all of them kept the firm faith that they can emerge victorious when they defend socialism and will be as good as dead if they abandon it, and that they took an active part in the struggle to make the socialism of our own style more brilliant.

In consideration of the change in the international environment and by drawing on the lessons of history gained in building socialism our Party, while comprehensively consolidating the politico-ideological position, sustained the original features of socialism in all fields of socialist construction and social life and gave full play to the advantages of the socialism of our own style.

Our Party dynamically carried on the socialist cause, holding aloft as ever the banner of the Juche idea, the banner of socialism, with firm faith in the validity of the socialist cause of Juche and in its victory, and based on absolute trust in our people who steadfastly followed it.

At a time when our socialist cause was advancing triumphantly along the road of Juche and bright prospects for national reunification were opening up in the rapidly changing situation, our Party and people were plunged into national mourning by the sudden loss of Comrade Kim Il Sung, the leader whom they believed in as in heaven and had followed. The demise of Comrade Kim Il Sung was the greatest sorrow and loss to our Party and people and the bitterest trial for our revolution.

After the period of national mourning, the imperialists and their vassal forces went to extremes in trying to strangle us by means of political and military pressure, war moves and an economic blockade. In addition, the country suffered a series of severe natural disasters, all of which subjected our people to indescribable difficulties and ordeals in economic construction and their everyday lives. The security of our country and the destiny of socialism were in jeopardy and our people were compelled to undertake the Arduous March and forced march, trials which were unheard of in history.

At this juncture, when there was worldwide concern over the future of our country and the imperialist reactionaries were absurdly trumpeting our possible “policy switch” and “system collapse,” Comrade Kim Jong Il resolutely declared his iron determination invariably to defend and carry forward to completion the cause of the Juche revolution pioneered by Comrade Kim Il Sung, however thorny the road of the revolution might be, and he wisely led the revolution and construction entirely as Comrade Kim Il Sung had intended and done.

Under his wise leadership the Workers’ Party of Korea firmly maintained the Songun-based revolutionary line, the ever-victorious path of the Korean revolution, and enforced Songun politics in a comprehensive way by carrying forward the cause of Comrade Kim Il Sung.

Songun politics is the main socialist political mode of Comrade Kim Jong Il’s style. It gives precedence to military affairs above all else on the principle of attaching importance to arms, the principle of prioritizing military affairs, strengthens the motive force of the revolution with the Korean People’s Army as the core and main force, and advances the socialist cause victoriously by relying on it. It embodies the fundamentals of the Songun revolution that the dignity of the country and nation and the victory of the revolution hinge on the arms of the revolution, and incorporates both the spirit of self-reliance and self-development by which one makes revolution by one’s own efforts by building up one’s strength and our Party’s thoroughgoing stand of anti-imperialist independence, as well as its revolutionary principles.

Songun is a glorious tradition of the Korean revolution, and Songun politics is based on the history and experience of our revolution which was started and advanced by force of arms under the banner of Juche. The mode of Songun politics is deeply rooted in the great Juche idea, and thanks to it and the politico-ideological and military strength built up in the course of the struggle to model the whole society on the Juche idea, the might of Songun could be brought into full play and the Songun era, a new era of the Juche revolution, ushered in.

Comrade Kim Jong Il, by continuing the march of Songun without interruption and with absolute trust in our service personnel and other people who were faithful to the Party’s cause, led the socialist cause of Juche along the road of victory. While comprehensively building up the People’s Army, the main force of the Songun revolution, our Party established a system of state administration in which national defence is given priority and reorganized and readjusted all fields in line with the principles and requirements of Songun.

Our Party, on the principle of prioritizing and giving precedence to military affairs, channelled primary efforts into developing the defence industry.

In the rigorous period when the enemy went to extremes in trying to isolate and stifle the DPRK and the whole nation had to tighten their belts, Comrade Kim Jong Il displayed the iron will to increase the country’s defence capabilities at any cost and further strengthened and developed our defence industry into an industry that is powerful and self-reliant. The Juche-oriented defence industry created by Songun politics constituted a guarantee for foiling the imperialists’ aggressive moves and safeguarding the security of the country and the bulwark of socialism.

The Workers’ Party of Korea firmly maintained the stand of anti-imperialist independence and socialist principles in the whole process of implementing Songun politics. This stand and these principles are fundamental for a revolutionary party in implementing the socialist cause, and a touchstone distinguishing revolution from counterrevolution and socialism from opportunism. For our Party and people, maintaining this stand and these principles had never been such an acute, vital question as it was in the period of the Arduous March, when the question was whether they would lead a dignified life as an independent people or become the slaves of imperialism once again. As the situation got more serious, our Party raised the banner of Songun even higher and maintained its stand and principles more firmly on the strength of arms. In this way it led our revolution confidently along the road of victory.

Our Party resolutely overpowered the imperialists and crushed their outrageous pressure and challenges by responding with the tougher countermeasure of wielding a sword when the enemy were drawing a knife and levelling a cannon when they were pointing a gun. With the spirit of the arms of Songun it raised a shield to the indecent wind of bourgeois liberalism and “reform” and “opening-up” blowing in from around us, allowing us to advance straight ahead along the road of socialism, as we chose.

Following the end of the Cold War, several countries abandoned their principles and opted for compromise and submission, overawed by the US military pressure and high-handedness. But the Workers’ Party of Korea maintained the stand of anti-imperialist independence and socialist principles without the slightest vacillation. Its fighting experience shows that still now, during the showdown of strength with imperialism, the principles of anti-imperialist independence and socialism can be defended and maintained by powerful arms alone, not by rhetoric.

The Workers’ Party of Korea victoriously led the struggle to defend the destiny of the country and people and safeguard and advance socialism on the strength of invincible arms.

Our Party smashed the mounting military pressure and aggressive manoeuvres of the imperialists and their vassal forces at every step by relying on its powerful military might.

The imperialist reactionaries, in an attempt to hinder us and stifle the socialism of our own style, resorted to international sanctions and a blockade and went wild in their pursuit of aggression by designating our country a target of a preemptive nuclear strike. But they failed utterly to browbeat our Republic, which has built an iron fortress on the strength of Songun.

Our Party resolutely resisted the enemy’s naked military blackmail and aggressive manoeuvres designed to violate our country’s sovereignty and our people’s destiny and to stifle our system, and inspired all its members, the entire army and all the people to join the just struggle for defending the country and socialism.

Thanks to the heroic struggle of the officers and men of the People’s Army and other people who rose up as one in single-hearted unity behind the Party, we won victory after victory in the protracted and fierce anti-imperialist, anti-US confrontation and completed the Arduous March and forced march with credit, thereby defending our national security and sovereignty and socialism with honour.

Our Party, by thwarting the imperialists’ ceaseless moves to start a war and saving the people from the holocaust of war, fulfilled its mission and duty as the protector of the destiny of the country and people. At present various parts of the world are still being devastated by war and people in a number of countries are still wandering in search of a means of survival. But the gunfire of war has not been heard in our country for several decades, and our people, though they are not well-off, are leading a peaceful and stable life, free from war. This is thanks entirely to Songun politics, and herein lies the greatest achievement of our Party.

Even in the severe struggle to defend socialism our Party, looking forward to a future of national prosperity with firm confidence in victory, set the ambitious goal of building a powerful socialist country and steadily strove to advance the socialist cause to a new stage.

The building of a powerful socialist country was the intention of Comrade Kim Il Sung and is the ideal and desire of our people. Our Party put forward a new line of economic construction in which the defence industry would be developed on a priority basis while boosting light industry and agriculture simultaneously, which was in keeping with the requirements of the Songun era, and mobilized our service personnel and all other people for a general onward march to build a powerful socialist country. The Kanggye spirit embodying the revolutionary soldier spirit was created, the torch of Songgang was kindled, and miracles and exploits were performed ceaselessly on all fronts of socialist construction. All this was done under the Songun-based leadership of our Party that had identified the People’s Army as the main force of the Songun revolution and the architect of the people’s joy and encouraged the whole society to learn from the revolutionary soldier spirit displayed by the army.

By bringing about a great turn in building a powerful socialist country through its Songun-based revolutionary leadership, our Party corroborated the truth that we can build our country into a world power in any adversity by relying on the force of arms, and it opened up a new, higher stage in the independent development of the nation and the fulfilment of the socialist cause.

It is a miracle of history, and also a great victory for the Juche idea and Songun politics, that our army and people, under the leadership of the Workers’ Party of Korea, could safeguard socialism and victoriously advance the socialist cause, standing alone against the US-led allied imperialist forces.

Comrades,

At a time when a historic turn was being effected in implementing the cause of the Juche revolution, and when the socialism of our own style was making a dynamic advance along the road of victory opened up by Songun politics, our Party and people were suddenly bereft of Comrade Kim Jong Il and went into national mourning once again.

Even as they wept tears of blood over the loss of Comrade Kim Jong Il, all our Party members, service personnel and other people, his soldiers and devoted followers, turned their sorrow into strength and courage and rallied firmly behind the Party Central Committee, turning out with determination in the struggle to translate into reality the intentions and wishes he had pursued in his lifetime.

The Workers’ Party of Korea, true to his ideas and intentions, organized and led the struggle to create a new turning point in fulfilling the socialist cause.

At the historic Fourth Party Conference our Party made clear its revolutionary faith and will to hold the great Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in the highest esteem as the eternal leaders of our Party and revolution and to maintain the great Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism as its eternal guiding ideology. It also mobilized its members and other people in a campaign to implement the instructions they had given in their lifetime. In line with the requirements for a crucial, historic turning point in carrying forward the cause of the Juche revolution, we further strengthened the Party organizationally and ideologically as befits the guiding force of the revolution, waged an intensive Party-wide struggle to root out abuses of power, bureaucratism and corruption, and established iron discipline and order within it. In this way we increased the Party’s fighting efficiency and might in a comprehensive way.

The Workers’ Party of Korea, as required by the prevailing situation and developing revolution, set out the strategic line of simultaneously promoting economic construction and the upbuilding of the nuclear forces, and made strenuous efforts to this end. Our Party’s new line is not a temporary countermeasure adopted to cope with the rapidly-changing situation, but a strategic line to which we should hold fast permanently in view of the supreme interests of our revolution. It is also an absolutely correct and revolutionary line aimed at building a prosperous socialist power as soon as possible by stepping up economic construction while making the country’s defences impregnable, with the nuclear forces as the backbone. Thanks to the vigorous struggle waged by our army and people to implement the Party’s strategic line, a strong guarantee has been furnished for putting a final end to the anti-imperialist, anti-US showdown and hastening the final victory of our cause.

The Workers’ Party of Korea, as the great leaders had planned and wished, launched a general all-people onward march to build the country into a thriving people’s paradise, thus ushering in a new era of national prosperity.

We made sure that Party organizations and government organs held fast to the principle of giving the highest and absolute priority to the people’s interests and comfort and strove with devotion to bring all the benefits of socialism to our people, the finest people in the world.

Our army and people, fully supporting the Party’s leadership, staged a daring campaign to carry through the leaders’ lifetime instructions and defend Party policy. By thus creating a new Korean speed in socialist construction, they have ushered in a Mallima era when, by racing against time, they reduce ten years to one.

The startling reality in our country at present has fully convinced Party members and all other people that they can build a powerful socialist country by their own efforts without fail, as the great leaders wished, and that the day of final victory for the cause of the Juche revolution is not far off.

The socialist cause of Juche is a science, and invariably adhering to and thoroughly embodying the revolutionary line and mode of independence maintained by the great leaders is precisely the way to achieve the victory of our revolution and eternal prosperity of the nation–this is the basic conclusion to be drawn from the struggle of our Party and people for advancing the socialist cause during the period under review.

The heroic struggle of the Workers’ Party of Korea and the Korean people in carrying forward the socialist cause to victory, holding aloft the banner of Juche and the banner of Songun in unprecedented adversity, will go down for ever in the sacred history of our Party and the history of the masses’ struggle for independence.

Splendid successes in building a thriving country

Comrades,

During the period under review brilliant victories were achieved in socialist construction and lasting foundations were laid for the prosperity of the country.

It is a proud success of our Party and people in building socialism that they established a politico-ideological power based on single-hearted unity, and an invincible military power. Ideology and politics play a leading role in social life. Accordingly, it is a primary task in building a powerful socialist country to solidify the politico-ideological position of socialism and strengthen its politico-ideological might.

The Workers’ Party of Korea, by embodying the Juche-oriented ideological theory, the revolutionary philosophy of single-hearted unity and the political line of independence, turned our country into a dignified socialist country that is powerful politically and ideologically.

During the period under review our Party consistently held fast to ideology as a key element and gave decisive precedence to ideological education and political work, thus training its members and all other people into staunch revolutionary fighters with the firm faith that their Party, system, ideology and cause are the best in the world. The imperialist reactionaries viciously manoeuvred to infect and undermine our revolutionary ranks by infiltrating into them the alien bourgeois ideology and culture, but they could not break our people’s faith in socialism and their will to adhere to it, as they were educated and trained in the embrace of the Party. Today our country is demonstrating its might as an invincible ideological power, the whole society of which is imbued with the Juche idea and the Songun idea, and whose service personnel and all other people, equipped with the thoroughgoing spirit of safeguarding the revolution and the resolute spirit of defending socialism, are creating a history of sea changes on the strength of the great spirit of Kim Il Sung’s nation.

The great success and exploit achieved by our Party during the period under review are that it realized the single-hearted unity of the whole society in which the entire Party and all the people are firmly rallied around the leader in ideology, purpose and moral obligation.

The single-hearted unity of the leader, the Party and the masses of the people is part of the revolutionary philosophy of Comrade Kim Jong Il. He advanced the idea of single-hearted unity based on one ideology and one centre, and, through his seasoned leadership, united the whole Party and society.

Our Party, having raised the slogan “Everything for the people, everything by relying on them!” made sure that the whole Party loved the people, served them with devotion and worked by relying on them. Its politics of love for the people, its benevolent politics, deepened their trust in it, guaranteed political stability in society and consolidated the harmonious whole of the Party and people. The leader, the Party and the masses are firmly bound together by one ideology and faith and by comradely love and obligation, and the whole society forms a great harmonious family whose members help one another and lead one another forward, sharing the same destiny–these are the genuine features of the socialism of our own style.

The invincible might of our country as a politico-ideological power is clearly manifested in the supreme brilliance it has added to its national sovereignty and dignity; it has achieved this by means of independent politics embodying the Juche idea. We solve all the problems arising in the revolution and construction in the interests of our people and in keeping with the specific situation in our country; we firmly adhere to revolutionary principles and the stand of independence in Party and state activities; and we proudly exercise our country’s authority and influence as a dignified political power in the international political arena.

In the whole course of its leadership of the revolution, the Workers’ Party of Korea has maintained the strategic line of prioritizing young people and trained them as staunch successors to the revolution who carry forward the lineage of Juche. In this way it has built the sole youth power in the world.

It channelled great efforts into the education of young people, based on the view that their ideological education is essential in settling the youth problem. It put them forward as the masters of the times and gave the youth league immense assignments so as to train them into stalwarts in the practical struggle. Our young men and women, by completing the construction of the magnificent Paektusan Hero Youth Power Station, a task assigned by the Party, demonstrated to the world the might of the indomitable spirit, self-reliance and self-development of Korea’s youth and struck a hard blow against the US imperialists and their vassal forces. The spirit of the Paektusan hero youth, created by the young vanguard in the Paektu area where the Juche revolution started, is the spirit of the present times. That they have been fully prepared as the reliable vanguard and giants of creation who defend the prestige of the Party and go through fire and water in response to its call, is a clear demonstration of the validity and vitality of our Party’s idea and line of prioritizing young people.

It is a source of pride for our Party and a great victory that it has so satisfactorily resolved the youth problem, the problem of the successors to the revolution, which is such a challenge around the world, and built a youth power we can boast of internationally. The building of this youth power has enabled our country to give fuller play to its might as the viable and promising Juche-oriented politico-ideological power.

A remarkable success achieved by the Workers’ Party of Korea during the period under review is that it developed our country into an invincible military power by implementing the Songun-based revolutionary line, the self-defensive military line. Our Party, proceeding from the fundamentals of the Songun revolution, set creating a military power as an important strategic task in building a powerful socialist country, and directed great efforts to doing so.

Under the leadership of the Party, our People’s Army was prepared as the main force in carrying out the cause of the Juche revolution and as a powerful revolutionary army in which the unified command system of the Supreme Commander is thoroughly established and which is firmly armed with the spirit of defending the Party Central Committee to the death and the spirit of acting as human bullets and bombs.

The People’s Army today has developed into a force of true comrades and comrades-in-arms who are firmly united around the Supreme Commander on the basis of revolutionary comradeship and obligation; it is demonstrating its might as an elite combat force in which a revolutionary military climate and steel-strong discipline have been established and which has assumed the features of a splendid regular armed force. Because the entire army seethed with enthusiasm for training as the anti-Japanese guerrillas had done on Mt Paektu, the officers and men could develop into a-match-for-a-hundred combatants who are firmly armed with Kim Il Sung’s and Kim Jong Il’s military ideas, strategies and tactics and possessed of the highest capability for fighting a war. Our People’s Army was strengthened into an invincible revolutionary armed force that is equipped with modern means of attack and defence of our own style. As a result it can destroy and annihilate at a single stroke any imperialist forces of aggression that dare to violate our country’s sovereignty and dignity. By giving full play to the revolutionary soldier spirit, it is making a breakthrough on every major front of socialist construction for achieving national prosperity and improving the people’s well-being; it is demonstrating the mettle and might of a powerful revolutionary army that does not know the word impossible.

Under the leadership of our Party, the Korean People’s Internal Security Forces grew in strength as a revolutionary armed force that is faithful to it and into the dependable guardian of the country and people, thus fulfilling with credit its mission and duty of defending the leader, system and people.

During the period under review the defence industry and sector of defence science and technology made rapid progress, to the admiration of the world.

True to the Party’s idea of prioritizing national defence, officials, scientists and technicians in these sectors strove to develop new, Juche-oriented weapons of our own style, thereby opening up prospects for surpassing the cutting edge in the development of the defence industry. Our defence science and technology have now attained the highest level and the defence industry is readily manufacturing cutting-edge military hardware of our own style that is precise, light, unmanned and intelligent. Our nuclear weapons research sector succeeded in three rounds of underground nuclear tests and the first hydrogen bomb test. In this way it achieved a proud victory by placing our country in the front rank of world nuclear powers and ending the history of the US imperialists’ bloody aggression and nuclear threat.

Ours has developed into a self-supporting defence industry, a revolutionary industry that produces and supplies powerful military hardware capable of destroying any of the enemy’s modern military hardware at a stroke. The enemy are trembling with fear in the face of the power of our cutting-edge Juche-oriented defence industry, and our people are taking an active part in socialist construction without worries about their livelihood and full of confidence in victory under the protection of our powerful defences and war deterrent.

The climate of prioritizing arms, military affairs, was established throughout society and a turn was brought about in rounding off the combat preparedness of our paramilitary forces. The whole country now subordinates everything to military affairs, regarding them as the most important of all state affairs. The hearts of all the people are burning with a do-or-die spirit to achieve the sacred cause of national reunification through all-out resistance in the event of a decisive showdown. Our paramilitary forces, including the Worker-Peasant Red Guards, were strengthened into a revolutionary armed force whose members are capable of defending their provinces, counties and villages by themselves, and an all-people, nationwide defence system was established.

It is a source of great pride for our Party, army and people that they have built an invincible military power admired by the world by tightening their belts and working hard in such difficult conditions and environment. This is a historic exploit that has made it possible to provide a sure military guarantee for the country’s prosperity and for the victory of the cause of the Juche revolution and to safeguard peace on the Korean peninsula and in the region.

Now that this splendid politico-ideological and military power has been built, the motive force of our revolution has been made incomparably stronger. The people, equipped with the revolutionary ideology of the Party, united around it single-heartedly and armed with powerful weapons, form the most powerful motive force of the revolution, and the sacred cause of such a people is ever-victorious.

During the period under review great progress was also achieved in developing the economy and culture.

Our Party and people strove to implement the strategic line of socialist economic construction, so as to solidify the material and technological foundations of our independent national economy and provide a springboard for building an economic giant. Proactive efforts were made to put the national economy on a Juche-oriented, modern and scientific basis.

The raw materials, fuel and power bases of our self-supporting economy were consolidated, Juche-oriented production lines established in key sectors and the industrial infrastructure further improved. The Anbyon Youth Power Station, Huichon Power Station, Paektusan Hero Youth Power Station and other large- , medium- and small-scale power plants were built, and promising coal and ore mines developed. The Juche-based system of producing iron and lines for producing fertilizer and vinalon were built, and new production bases established in different sectors of the national economy, further consolidating its independence and Juche character.

Amid the flames of the industrial revolution in the new century, factories and enterprises pushed ahead with the modernization of their equipment and production lines and the national economy reached a higher standard in terms of its overall technical equipment. Modern machine-building bases and production bases for electronic and automation elements and instruments guaranteeing the country’s economic development were built, with the result that our industry attained such a high level of development that it can produce cutting-edge equipment in reliance on domestic resources. Innovations were achieved in developing telecommunications, and production lines, technical equipment and the means of operation were further modernized in the transport, building-materials and other sectors.

During the period under review our Party devoted the greatest importance to the people’s livelihood and put great efforts into the struggle to improve their material and cultural standards of living.

In the agricultural sector guarantees were provided for increasing the production of cereals by launching a campaign to improve seeds, making a radical turn in potato farming, two-crop farming and scientific farming, realigning over 320 000 hectares of farmland as befits the land of socialist Korea, and building some 10 000 km of gravitational waterways. Modern animal husbandry bases, fish farms, vegetable greenhouses, mushroom cultivation bases and vast stretches of “youth” orchards sprang up across the country under the leadership of the Party; these are invaluable assets for improving the people’s living standards. In the fishing sector a breakthrough for its further development was made in the course of the struggle to implement the Party’s plan for creating a new history of “gold seas.” Factories and enterprises in light industry, by making proactive efforts to upgrade themselves technologically and make use of domestically-produced raw and other materials, became able to turn out quality consumer goods in larger quantities.

A large number of monumental structures of the era of the Workers’ Party which embody the Juche-oriented idea on architecture were built, according to the Party’s grand plan for construction. These served to solidify the foundations for socialist economic construction and for improving the people’s living standards.

Notable achievements were recorded in the development of socialist culture.

With the implementation of the Party’s line of prioritizing science and technology, outstanding scientific and technical personnel were produced, the material and technological foundations of the scientific research sector were consolidated and epochal progress was made in science and technology, despite the severe economic difficulties in the country. Our dependable scientists and technicians frustrated the vicious obstructive moves of the US imperialists and their vassal forces, and achieved world-startling miraculous successes in the core, basic technology, space technology and other branches of cutting-edge science and technology. They thus demonstrated the resourcefulness and talents of the Korean intellectuals who have grown up under the care of the Party. In the run-up to the historic Seventh Party Congress our space scientists, admirable heroes of Juche Korea, achieved a signal success by launching the earth observation satellite Kwangmyongsong 4 before the eyes of the whole world, thus exalting the prestige of our state and demonstrating the indomitable mettle of our great people.

During the period under review fresh progress was made in education, in line with the requirements of the IT era, including the introduction of universal 12-year compulsory education and the establishment of a distance education system. This was in accordance with our Party’s idea and line of prioritizing education. The splendid Sci-Tech Complex was built as a great temple of learning for all the people in the 21st century and a centre for disseminating the latest science and technology, and Mirae digital libraries and other sci-tech learning spaces were set up across the country, providing the launching pad for a leap to the pinnacle of a sci-tech power, a talent power.

Thanks to our Party’s Juche-based idea and policy on public health, medical services for the people were improved; such modern medical institutions as the Pyongyang Maternity Hospital Breast Tumour Institute, Okryu Children’s Hospital and Ryugyong Dental Hospital were built; and a nationwide telemedicine system was set up.

In accordance with the Party’s policy of prioritizing sports, a powerful sports wind was raised, sports facilities were renovated and a fresh turn was brought about in the development of sports in the country. Our dependable sportspeople exalted the honour of Juche Korea in international competitions including the Olympic Games and world championships, inspiring the people with strength and courage.

During the period under review a model of Songun culture was created in the People’s Army; the State Merited Chorus, a pride of our state, and many other art troupes played their part as buglers on the revolutionary advance; the multi-part feature film The Nation and Destiny and the grand mass gymnastics and artistic performance Arirang were produced, becoming hits of Juche-oriented art and literature and world-class masterpieces; and mass cultural and artistic activities were conducted briskly among the service personnel and working people, with the result that the whole society was brimming with revolutionary optimism.

Fully aware of their mission as faithful spokespersons, staunch advocates and powerful disseminators of Party policy, journalists, editors and others in the mass media supported the ideology and cause of the Party with loyalty by wielding the “pen” of the revolution.

A nationwide campaign was conducted to turn towns and countryside, streets and villages into a socialist paradise, and several magnificent scenic attractions and facilities for pursuing cultural and leisure activities were built in order to improve the conditions and environment for the people to lead a cultured life.

The proud successes our army and people achieved in socialist construction by faithfully following the great Juche idea and the Party’s Songun-based leadership and giving full play to the revolutionary spirit of self-reliance and fortitude and patriotic ardour are the invaluable wealth of the nation. Being associated with the precious sweat and blood of the service personnel and all other people, they are priceless assets guaranteeing that a thriving country can be built and the socialist cause accomplished.

Brilliant succession to the revolutionary cause

Comrades,

The secret to all the victories and successes achieved by our Party and people in the course of implementing the cause of the Juche revolution during the period under review lies in the fact that they held the great Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in the highest esteem as their leaders and worked hard under their wise leadership, and that they brilliantly carried forward the revolutionary cause of the leader from one generation to the next.

The revolutionary cause of the masses of the people, the socialist cause, is a sacred one which is launched and advances under the guidance of the leader, and a long-term one that continues from one generation to the next. Victory in the revolution and the future of a country and nation hinge on whether or not they are guided by a great leader and whether or not the cause of the leader who launched and advanced the revolution is invariably carried forward through the generations. Written into the history of the struggle of the masses of the people for independence is the serious lesson that a party without a great leader cannot emerge victorious in a revolution and a party that fails to carry forward the cause of its leader properly is bound to degenerate, resulting in the revolution being frustrated.

Our Party and people held up Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il at the highest post of the revolution throughout their revolutionary struggle.

Comrade Kim Il Sung was the great leader of our Party and people who created the immortal Juche idea and led the cause of the Juche revolution along the road of victory.

After embarking on the road of revolution in his early years he led the uncharted Korean revolution through numerous difficulties and ordeals along the road of victory for a long period, thus exalting the dignity and honour of the nation, and built on this land a socialist state that is independent, self-supporting and self-reliant in defence. In this way he laid lasting foundations for the victory of the cause of the Juche revolution. Experiencing all manner of hardships from the historic time when he fought for national liberation in the forests of Mt Paektu to the final moments of his life, he worked energetically, solely for the people’s well-being, the country’s prosperity, national reunification and the cause of global independence, and did everything in his power for his country, people and nation.

Comrade Kim Jong Il was the outstanding leader who strengthened and developed the Workers’ Party of Korea into a revolutionary party of Juche and guided the cause of the Juche revolution along the road of victory by faithfully continuing the ideology and cause of Comrade Kim Il Sung.

He made it his lifelong mission to carry through the revolutionary cause pioneered on Mt Paektu and wisely led our Party, state, army and people to create a new history of miracles and change in all fields of the revolution and construction; during the unprecedentedly grim years for our revolution he saved the revolution, country and people from crisis through his original Songun-based revolutionary leadership and ushered in a new era of national prosperity, a new golden age in the implementation of the cause of the Juche revolution.

His revolutionary career was the most brilliant life of a great revolutionary, one who performed undying exploits for the times and revolution, the country and people, by battling his way along the thorny path, holding aloft the red flag of the revolution; it was the noblest life of a peerless patriot and great man, one who devoted his whole life for the good of the country and people, as Comrade Kim Il Sung had entrusted him.

Because they were striving under the wise leadership of Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, holding them in the highest esteem as the leaders of the revolution during the period under review, our people could become the most independent and dignified people, our country could demonstrate its might as the socialist power of Juche, and our revolution could follow the road of victory and glory, weathering the storms of history.

The Workers’ Party of Korea, by following the road of victory under the leadership of the great leaders, could brilliantly resolve the theoretical and practical problems arising in the succession to the revolutionary cause and faithfully carry forward their ideology and cause.

It found effective solutions to the problem of carrying forward the revolutionary cause, thereby setting an example for the world in defending and adding brilliance to the revolutionary cause of the leader from one generation to the next.

Comrade Kim Jong Il held up Comrade Kim Il Sung as the eternal leader of our Party and people, consistently defended and added lustre to his ideology and cause, and thus originated the cause of immortalizing the leader. He instilled in the service personnel and all other people the belief that Comrade Kim Il Sung will always be with them, and ensured that they added eternal glory to his great revolutionary career and immortal exploits.

The Workers’ Party of Korea, on the basis of its steadfast revolutionary faith and moral obligation, holds Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il in the highest esteem as the eternal leaders of our Party and revolution, and is faithfully carrying forward their ideology and cause.

Our Party saw to it that the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where the great leaders are kept in their lifetime appearance, was developed to make it more solemn, as befits the supreme sanctuary of Juche, and that bronze statues of the leaders and portraits of them smiling were set up with reverence in all parts of the country, so that they will always be with our people and live in the hearts of our people and progressive mankind. It ensured that all sectors and all units implemented their ideas and intentions thoroughly and without any deviation or concession by regarding the struggle to carry out their lifetime instructions as their main task and lifeline, so that their sacred revolutionary history could keep developing, along with the country’s prosperity.

In the course of their struggle to defend and add lustre to socialism under the unfurled banner of the Juche idea and banner of Songun, our Party and people confirmed beyond question the priceless philosophy that the leader plays the decisive role in implementing the revolutionary cause of the masses of the people to achieve independence, and that the inheritance of the cause of the leader is fundamental to the destiny of the revolution and the future of the people.

The Workers’ Party of Korea has followed the road of victory for decades. It is a highly dignified and glorious party that is blessed with its leader and is ever-victorious as it brilliantly carries forward the ideology and leadership of the leader.

For accomplishing the socialist cause

Comrades,

Today we are faced with important tasks of advancing the Korean revolution onto a higher stage and carrying through the socialist cause with the ideology and exploits of Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il as the eternal cornerstone.

The great leaders devoted their whole life to the socialist cause of Juche, and accomplishing it is a historic mission entrusted to our Party, army and people.

We should hold aloft the banner of modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism and make dynamic headway along the road of continuous revolution so as to carry the socialist cause to brilliant fruition.

Modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism

Comrades,

In order to accomplish the socialist cause and realize the full independence of the masses of the people, the whole society should be modelled on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism.

The cause of independence of the people, the socialist cause, can successfully be accomplished only by modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism and guided by this great ideology.

Modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism is the ultimate programme of our Party.

It is the revolutionary continuation of modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism, which Comrade Kim Jong Il put forward in his early years and worked to translate into reality, and its comprehensive development onto a new, higher level. Today our revolution has entered the historic stage of realizing the people’s ideal and desire for independence in full measure under the unfurled banner of the great Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism. In the course of the struggle to safeguard socialism and advance it victoriously, the motive force of our revolution has been built up and made rock-solid, and the strategic position and influence of our country have been markedly enhanced.

We should step up the modelling of the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism and increase our political, military and economic might in every way, if we are to win final victory in the showdown with the allied imperialist forces, build a people’s paradise that is reunified and prosperous on this land as soon as possible, and play a pivotal role in achieving the cause of global independence.

Modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism means advancing our revolution with this great ideology as the sole guideline and, on this basis, building and perfecting an ideal society for the people. In other words, it means training every member of society to be genuine Kimilsungists-Kimjongilists and transforming politics, military affairs, the economy, culture and all other fields in line with the requirements of this ideology, thereby realizing the people’s complete independence.

Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism is an integrated system comprising the Juche idea created by Comrade Kim Il Sung and developed in depth by Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, and the theories and methods of the revolution and construction elucidated by this idea.

It scientifically explains the true features of society where the independence of the people, the ultimate goal of our Party, has been fully realized, the law-governed process by which it is built, and the strategy and policies for the struggle that should strictly be adhered to in the whole course of carrying out the socialist cause. It makes a comprehensive and systematic presentation of the revolutionary theories and leadership methods for achieving the final victory of the socialist cause on the basis of the great Juche idea and the Songun idea, and clarifies how all domains of social life can be transformed in a revolutionary way to meet the people’s aspiration and demand for independence. Herein lies its unique historic position as the perfect guiding ideology for the revolution in our times, and its invincible might.

To imbue the whole society with Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism is a sacred struggle to advance the revolution and construction in line with the ideas and intentions of Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il and add glory to the undying exploits performed by the great leaders for the country and revolution, the times and history. We should constantly step up our efforts to model the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism so as to implement their lifetime instructions thoroughly in all fields, and strengthen and develop our Party, state and army into the party, state and army of the great leaders for ever.

The major task facing us today in modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism is to complete the cause of building a powerful socialist country.

A powerful socialist country means the best country in the world, one with great national strength that is ever-prospering and whose people are living happily without envying anyone in the world.

Building a socialist power is a struggle to accomplish the cause of building the powerful socialist state planned by the great leaders, and the lasting foundations of which were laid by them. The socialist cause, which is carried on with a country or nation as the unit amid a fierce showdown with imperialism, can be accomplished only by building a nation bearing the hallmarks of a power in all the fields of politics, military affairs, the economy, science and technology, and culture.

The building of a powerful socialist country is a historic phase in the struggle to model the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism. It constitutes the process of laying the foundations of socialism and achieving its complete victory.

Only through a struggle to attain the high goal of building a powerful socialist country will it be possible to consolidate the political and military forces and the economic, technological and cultural foundations that guarantee the complete victory of socialism, and to give full play to the advantages of our socialist system. By speeding up the building of a powerful socialist country we can consolidate our position as a political and military power and fly the flag of victory on the peak of a sci-tech power, economic giant and civilized power. Thus we can bring about a radical turn in the struggle to model the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism.

In order to build a powerful socialist country successfully under the banner of modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism, we must fully implement our Party’s general line of vigorously carrying out the three revolutions–ideological, technological and cultural–while strengthening the people’s government and enhancing its functions and role.

The people’s government is a powerful tool for building a socialist power. Only when we strengthen the people’s government and enhance its functions and role can we ensure the full right to independence and creative activities of the masses of the people, firmly defend the socialist system and give full play to the might of collectivism, and thereby step up socialist construction.

The ideological, technological and cultural revolutions are elements of the continuous revolution to be carried out in the whole course of socialist construction, and they are also the highest stage of the revolution aimed at realizing the independence of the people. Through the three revolutions, the whole society is imbued with one ideology and united at a high level on the basis of Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism, and rapid progress is made in economic and cultural construction. As a result, the goals for building a powerful socialist country can be attained.

Today a powerful socialist country is being built in the face of the vicious ideological and cultural infiltration and economic and technological blockade conducted by the imperialists and reactionaries, and one generation of the revolution is being replaced by the next. This situation requires us to carry out the three revolutions more thoroughly. While giving decisive precedence to the ideological revolution, we should speed up the technological and cultural revolutions so as to defend our ideology, system and culture firmly from the imperialists’ anti-socialist schemes and make socialism as different in all respects from capitalism as heaven is from earth.

We should uphold the spirit of self-development first.

The spirit of self-development first is the revolutionary spirit of strengthening the motive force of a nation and opening up the path ahead of it by relying on its own efforts, technology and resources.

The history of the Korean revolution is the one of self-development; the revolution was pioneered and has advanced victoriously by means of it. The basis of this spirit is the great leaders’ revolutionary idea that a country must carry out the revolution on its own, and the form of struggle for applying it is self-reliance and fortitude. The great leaders’ spirit of self-reliance and self-development, based on the principle that man is the master of his destiny and should carve out his destiny by himself, inspired our people to become stronger than anyone else in spiritual strength, not knowing the word impossible, and to develop theirs into an indisputably powerful nation.

Today we have nothing but our own strength to rely on. No one is willing to help us and see our country reunified, powerful, well-off and flourishing. It is only when we are possessed of the spirit of self-reliance and self-development that we can go through any trials and hardships and achieve the greatest success even in the worst conditions. We should reject big-power worship and dependence on foreign forces, and push ahead with building a powerful socialist country with our own strength, technology and resources and in the revolutionary spirit of self-reliance and fortitude. We should also achieve national reunification, the long-cherished desire of our nation, on our own by strengthening our motive force.

We should hold fast to the general line of socialist construction and the spirit of self-development first as the permanent strategic line for achieving great victory in the building of a powerful socialist country, and accomplish the historic cause of modelling the whole society on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism.

Building a sci-tech power

Comrades,

Becoming a sci-tech power is a key priority goal for us at present in building a powerful socialist country.

This is the age of science and technology, and its level of scientific and technological development is a criterion for judging the overall strength and status of a country. Scientific and technological strength is a state’s most important strategic resource and a powerful propellant for social development.

It is imperative, if we are to smash the imperialists’ economic and technological blockade, radically increase our capacity for self-development and make rapid progress in all sectors, to make science and technology our lifeblood.

By spurring the building of a sci-tech power, we should achieve a new leap forward in rapidly developing the country’s science and technology and usher in an era of prosperity by means of science, thus bringing about a revolutionary turn in socialist construction.

A sci-tech power is a country whose overall science and technology are at the most advanced level in the world, a country where science and technology play the leading role in ensuring the rapid development of all other sectors, including the economy, national defence and culture.

The goal of building a sci-tech power is to take an honourable place among the ranks of the most advanced nations in the world in the near future in terms of overall scientific and technological strength. When it comes to the development of science and technology, we should not simply follow the road taken by others but charge forward by leaps and bounds from one decade to the next by giving full play to our scientists’ patriotism and loyalty and our people’s resourcefulness and national self-respect. The sector of science and technology should conduct a vigorous campaign to surpass the cutting edge.

This campaign is an ideological offensive, a talent challenge, to acquire a complete grasp of the essentials of modern science and technology and beat the world in all fields of science and technology. Only by conducting this campaign dynamically can we rapidly develop the country’s science and technology overall and lay the foundations of a knowledge-based economy.

Great efforts should be made in the field of cutting-edge science and technology to develop technologies with a world-class competitive edge. We should make it our major thrust to develop such core, basic technologies as IT, nanotechnology and bioengineering, along with such pivotal and beneficial scientific and technological fields as new materials and energy, space and nuclear technologies, and concentrate our efforts on them. We should focus on the research projects with existing foundations and clear prospects so as to lead the world in those fields. By furthering our achievements in these projects we can rapidly develop science and technology. With the exploits Comrade Kim Jong Il performed in building a space power as our lasting foundation, we should further develop space science and technology with a view to manufacturing and launching more application satellites, which are a crystallization and highest form of cutting-edge technology.

It is important to speed up technological development in major fields such as mechanical, metal, thermal and materials engineering, and to apply the achievements proactively in different economic sectors.

The basic sciences are the cornerstone of a sci-tech power. A high level of basic sciences enables a country’s science and technology to make steady progress on a solid foundation. The sector of basic sciences, including mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology, should, while consolidating the theoretical and methodological base for the development of science and technology, generate international-level research findings.

We should make great efforts to develop new branches of cross-disciplinary sciences in line with the trend of the comprehensive development of science and technology and the demands of socio-economic development. We should achieve one miracle after another in surpassing the cutting edge, confident that we can beat the world in general science and technology in the near future.

Science and technology should play the role of the engine in building an economic giant.

The scientific research sector, with the viewpoint and attitude that it must pave the way for economic development and lead the economy by means of science and technology, should work out concrete scientific and technological plans for promoting the independence and Juche character of our economy and improving the people’s living standards, and adopt and implement specific measures to this end.

Major efforts should be channelled into finding scientific and technological solutions to the key challenges in building an economic giant, namely energy, iron and steel, chemical products and food. Scientific and technological steps should be taken to ease the strain on the country’s electricity supply and give definite precedence to energy supply over economic growth. Scientific research should be stepped up with the aim of perfecting Juche-based iron-making techniques in line with the actual conditions in our country and ensuring the domestic production of raw and other materials, along with the equipment that are currently imported. Proactive efforts should be made to solve the scientific and technological problems arising in introducing scientific and industrial methods into agricultural production and in modernizing light industry, so that the people’s standard of living can be improved.

The sector of science and technology should play the leading role in speeding up the integration of science and technology with the economy and making the country’s economy modern and IT-based.

To raise the status of our country as a sci-tech power, we should value talented personnel and ensure that all the people are well-versed in science and technology.

Talented personnel are decisive in everything. We should build up the ranks of scientific and technical talents with a view to them shouldering the future of a sci-tech power, and raise their research and development capability to the world advanced level. In accordance with the national strategy for the development of science and technology, we should more than treble the number of research workers in the scientific and technological sector in the near future. People capable of managing technology-intensive industry and a modern economy should be trained in a planned way to meet the demands of the era of the knowledge economy. And factories and enterprises should build up proper scientific and technological development forces.

Ensuring that all the people are well-versed in science and technology is an important undertaking to prepare all the members of society as intelligent workers with the intellectual level of a university graduate, and as the developers of science and technology.

A nationwide dissemination network should be established centring on the Sci-Tech Complex, a great temple of learning for all the people and a multifunctional hub of scientific and technological dissemination, so that new scientific and technological information flows from the centre to the lowest level. Institutions, enterprises, factories and cooperative farms need to build good sci-tech learning spaces that are connected to the Sci-Tech Complex online and ensure their proper operation in order to help the working people raise their level of scientific and technological knowledge and encourage them to make a positive contribution to the technological development of their respective units.

The state needs to carry out proper planning, guidance and management for the development of the country’s science and technology, establish a well-knit scientific research and development system, and provide in full the conditions needed by this sector.

We should maintain strategic focus in our planning and guidance for the development of science and technology, and ensure that no scientific research institutes tend to conduct research separately in a dispersed manner. It is important to draw up practical plans for attaining the state’s strategic targets, especially for surpassing the cutting edge and introducing cutting-edge technology into industrial sectors, and carry them out without fail. A system and order should be established whereby the state supervises, guides and promotes planning and implementation for the integration of science and technology with the economy.

The dissemination and introduction of science and technology should be conducted properly and the methods of economic management improved so that all sectors and all units work hard to profit from developing and introducing new technologies. The advanced scientific and technological achievements of other countries need to be adopted promptly, and adapted to our specific conditions.

We should adjust and consolidate the national system of scientific research and development. It is important to improve the specialized scientific research institutes as required by the developing reality and to set up new institutes that can focus on core research projects at the frontiers of science and technology. We should also ensure that research into application technologies is undertaken by the research and development units of individual ministries, national agencies, factories and enterprises. Universities and colleges should play a pacesetter role in the research into basic sciences and the development of cutting-edge science and technology, while factories and enterprises should assume much of the burden for implementing national projects for developing priority technologies. Provinces, cities and counties should build up research forces and development units that can provide a scientific and technological impetus to their local economic development and the improvement of the people’s living standards.

The state should scale up its investment in the sector of science and technology. Expenditure on the development of science and technology should be increased systematically when working out the state budget, and local budgets and funding for factories and enterprises should be used as efficiently as possible for scientific and technological development in the relevant units. Scientific research institutes, universities and colleges should set up bases for producing hi-tech products and operate them efficiently in order to generate funds for research and development.

A climate of prioritizing science and technology should prevail throughout society.

Based on the viewpoint and attitude that no success can be achieved in any work without relying on science and technology, all sectors and all units should direct primary efforts to their development and solve all problems on their strength. Every sector and every unit should treasure talents, enhance the role of scientific and technical personnel, and plan, organize and implement all work in a scientific manner.

We should positively encourage scientists and technicians to challenge one another in terms of their talent and practical ability with a firm determination to beat the world, so that they can fulfil their responsibility and role as pacesetters in the age of the knowledge-based economy. We should value and give prominence to scientists and technicians and provide them with good working and living conditions so that they can apply themselves to their scientific research.

A climate of studying science and technology needs to be established across society and all the people made masters and developers of science and technology, so that they can devote their knowledge and skills to building a powerful socialist country.

Building an economic giant and the strategy for developing the national economy

Comrades,

The building of an economic giant is the main front on which our Party and state should focus all their efforts at present. Although our country has now risen to the status of a fully-fledged political and military power, its economy has not yet attained a high enough level. Taking an overall view of the economy, we can see that some sectors are at the cutting-edge level, while others are lagging far behind; the economic sectors are not balanced properly and the vanguard sectors are failing to take the lead, all of which is hampering the country’s economic development.

We should expedite the building of an economic giant so as to lay solid material and technical foundations for the state and bring about a turn in improving the people’s living standards. The economic giant we are building is a country that is strong in terms of its independence and Juche character and is developing with science and technology as the main productive force. A socialist economic giant precisely means a powerful country with a self-supporting economy, a knowledge-based economy, which produces and supplies by itself the material means needed for defence building, economic construction and people’s livelihood improvement, and in which science and technology are integrated with production and hi-tech industry plays the leading role in promoting economic growth.

Our Party’s strategic line for building an economic giant is to make the national economy Juche-oriented, modern, IT-based and scientific at a high level by maintaining the spirit of self-reliance and self-development and by relying on science and technology, and to provide the people with affluent and cultured living conditions. We should consistently maintain the principle of resolving economic problems from the firm standpoint of Juche and by relying on our people’s independent and creative spirit and science and technology. In this way we can foil the imperialists’ and reactionaries’ blockade and make rapid qualitative progress in building an economic giant.

The independence and Juche character of the national economy should be consolidated comprehensively.

What is fundamental in guaranteeing the independence and Juche character of the national economy is to ensure the domestic production of raw materials, fuel and equipment. We should establish production and technical processes for supplying raw materials and fuel, which are strategically important to economic development, from local resources, and produce and furnish cutting-edge equipment and other technological means that are badly needed, by ourselves to meet our actual conditions. On the basis of modern technology, we should enhance the Juche orientation of the basic industrial sectors, make comprehensive and effective use of the country’s resources and proactively exploit our crude oil and other major resources.

The energy, or power, and food problems are of key importance in achieving the independent and sustainable growth of the national economy.

The construction of power bases should be promoted on a long-term basis by giving decisive precedence to energy production over economic growth. We should put the main stress on hydropower, at the same time as rationally combining it with thermal power to generate electricity; we should also increase the proportion of atomic power generation and make active use of a variety of renewable energy sources, with the aim of meeting the national energy demand by ourselves. We should use the latest science and technology to improve how energy is produced and convert the country’s economy into an energy-saving one.

We should become self-sufficient in food. We should ensure the sustainable growth of food production not simply for the present but with an eye to the future, and develop agriculture to the advanced international level. We should regard the socialist rural theses presented by Comrade Kim Il Sung and the Party’s policy of the agricultural revolution as our grand programme for solving the food problem, the agricultural problem, and carry them through.

We should equip ourselves with a multi-faceted and comprehensive economic structure capable of satisfying, through domestic production, the material demands of economic development and the people’s livelihood and consistently improve and perfect it. We need to develop all economic sectors harmoniously at a rapid rate by reflecting the demands of the law governing the planned and balanced development of the national economy. We should make significant efforts to open up and develop those economic sectors in which we can lead the world by relying on such resources that are abundant in our country as magnesite, graphite, silica and rare-earth minerals, as well as on our technology.

We should speed up the building of a modern, IT-based national economy so as to transform the country’s economy into one that is knowledge-based.

The strategic goal in this process is for all production lines to be made remote-controlled and intelligent and all factories and enterprises, fully automated. We should push ahead with the industrial revolution in the new century so as to upgrade the overall national economy with modern technology and raise all sectors to the cutting-edge standard. An integrated manufacturing system and fully automated control system should be established, green production and other advanced production methods introduced and major economic technical indices raised to the advanced international level and steadily improved.

All sectors of the national economy should achieve the integration of science and technology with production. We should strive to build a powerful infrastructure for a knowledge-based economy, introduce modern science and technology into all sectors, establish a business operation system whereby science and technology, or knowledge, lead production, and make the production and technical management processes at factories and enterprises development- and creation-oriented.

Hi-tech industries are the pillar of the knowledge economy. These industries, which include the information, nanotechnology and biological industries, should be established on a large scale so as to increase their share of, and enhance their pivotal role in, the country’s economic development.

We should orient the country’s economic development towards creating an affluent and cultured life for the people. The genuine features and essential characteristics of a socialist economic giant are not just that the country is highly developed in terms of productivity and national income; it must also be a people’s paradise which provides its people with an affluent and cultured life. In solving all the problems that arise in economic construction, our benchmark should be the demand for independence and the interests of the people. We should attach importance to the development of the sectors that directly influence their livelihood, furnish the working people with excellent conditions for their working and material life and expand the scope of the Party’s and state’s people-oriented policies, so as steadily to improve the people’s standard of living.

To ensure success in building a socialist economic giant, the strategy at every stage of the development of the national economy should be worked out scientifically and realistically and implemented without fail.

For the present, we should implement to the letter the five-year strategy for national economic development from 2016 to 2020.

The objective of this five-year strategy is to lay the foundations for the sustainable development of the country’s economy by reenergizing the overall national economy and ensuring a balance among economic sectors. In this period, we are required to improve the people’s living standards drastically by normalizing the vanguard sectors of the national economy, the basic industries, and boosting agricultural and light industrial production, while holding fast to the Party’s new line of simultaneously promoting economic construction and the upbuilding of the nuclear forces, and resolving the energy problem.

A nationwide effort should be made to solve the electricity problem.

This is a prerequisite for implementing the five-year strategy and the main link in the whole chain of developing the economy and improving the people’s standard of living. It is imperative to attain the power production target set by the Party for the period. The electric-power industry should adjust and improve the defective production processes and facilities at power stations and step up their technical upgrading so as to raise the efficiency of generating equipment, ensure their operation at full capacity and lower power generation costs systematically. The state should take steps to provide the equipment, materials and funds needed by this sector on a preferential basis.

Making effective use of the electricity that is produced is key to resolving the acute shortage of power. A nationwide integrated power control system should be established and operated effectively, and alternated production organized on a rational basis. The power transmission and supply network should be upgraded, the voltage step heightened and power-factor improved to ensure minimum loss of electricity in transmission. The transmission system should gradually be converted to a flexible alternating current system.

We should develop on an extensive scale electricity production bases that rely on power sources that are abundant in our country. The power stations that are now under construction should be completed ahead of schedule, and the large-scale Tanchon Power Station should be built as soon as possible, with work on the atomic power plant pushed ahead at the same time, so as to open up prospects for settling the electricity problem. Provinces, cities and counties should build small- and medium-scale power stations where practicable and ensure their steady operation. We should boost the amount of electricity generated from wind and tidal power and from biomass and solar energy, and consistently expand the scope of the use of renewable energy.

The coal-mining and metallurgical industries and the rail transport sector should be developed radically.

The coal-mining industry should concentrate investment on mines with rich deposits and favourable conditions for mining, and launch a dynamic campaign for increased production so as to satisfy the growing demand of the national economy for coal. Coal mines should introduce more efficient mining methods, and strive to realize the comprehensive mechanization of pit work, diversify transport and improve coal dressing processes so as to supply high-quality coal to consumers. Precedence should be given to prospecting and tunnelling aimed at identifying more coal reserves that can be exploited and at developing new coal mines and pits on a large scale.

The metallurgical industry should improve the level of technical equipment for its iron- and steel-making and rolling processes and take steps to supply raw materials, fuel and power so that iron and steel production can be increased. It should expand the production capacity at iron-ore mines and build up the production bases for electrodes, ferro-alloys and refractories in order to further consolidate its material and technical foundations. It should improve the technical and economic indices of iron and steel production and increase the variety of alloy steel and standardized steel by relying on advanced technology, in keeping with the modern trend of development of the metallurgical industry.

The rail transport sector should establish a strict unified traffic control system, organize transport in a scientific and rational way and tighten discipline so as to ensure that transport is prompt, accurate, smooth and safe. We should modernize the Kim Jong Thae Electric Locomotive Complex in line with the demands of the IT era, step up the technical upgrading of other railway works and enterprises by using this complex as a model, and develop and produce in larger numbers modern means of rail transport such as alternating-current electric locomotives. We should further improve the country’s railway network, step up the introduction of heavy-duty and high-speed rails, modernize railway facilities and equipment, and introduce IT into their management and operation.

A major turn should be brought about in the machine-building, chemical and building-materials industries and in the construction sector.

The machine-building industry is the foundation of economic development and technological progress. This sector should equip itself with cutting-edge facilities, upgrade its production lines by improving the performance of existing machinery and equipment and forming flexible manufacturing cells, and resolve the problem of measuring equipment and tools. On the basis of the latest advances in machine-building technology it should design and manufacture modern, new-type machines of the international standard and launch serial production of them.

The chemical industry should carry out regular adjustments and maintenance of its production equipment and systems, build up its production capacity and ensure the domestic production of catalysts so as to normalize the production of fertilizer and vinalon based on our own methods and basic chemical products. It should press ahead with its technical upgrading in the direction of reducing power consumption and removing pollution, and build new chemical goods production bases fed by local resources under a long-term plan. In the period of implementing the above-mentioned strategy, it should establish a C1 chemical industry based on coal gasification, create a carbonization process using brown coal, and perfect the sodium carbonate industry whose starting material is glauberite. In this way the production of such chemical goods as methanol, synthetic fuel and synthetic resin can be placed on a highly Juche-oriented basis.

The construction sector should build monumental structures of lasting value, which embody the principle of prioritizing comfort and aesthetic beauty. They should be of the highest standard and built at the fastest pace, with our Party’s Juche-oriented idea of architectural aesthetics as the guideline. It should build up central and local design and construction forces, upgrade its means of design, construction equipment and tools, encourage dry-process fabrication, and widely introduce zero-energy, zero-carbon and intelligent architectural techniques.

The building-materials industry should modernize its factories and enterprises, ensure both the specialized and traditional production of goods, and make the most of the latest technical advances, so as to diversify the types and range of building materials and produce them domestically.

The sectors of agriculture, fishing and light industry should conduct a vigorous production campaign aimed at achieving breakthroughs in improving the people’s standard of living.

The agricultural sector should carry out the cereals production plan by raising a strong wind of scientific farming in accordance with the Juche farming method. It should breed superior strains in larger numbers and follow this up with the production of seeds that meet local demands for specific varieties. Crops and strains should be distributed properly, in conformity with the geographical features and natural climatic conditions. Scientific and technical requirements should be observed strictly in manuring and cultivating crops, and a positive effort should be made to introduce advanced farming methods. Consistent efforts should be put into implementing the Party’s policy on encouraging organic farming and establishing a food production cycle.

The animal husbandry sector should solve the problem of domestic breeds and their feed, rear them scientifically, and adopt comprehensive anti-epizootic measures so as to boost livestock production. A mass drive should be conducted to raise grass-eating domestic animals, and collective livestock farming should be developed at cooperative farms and individual livestock farming in rural households, so that every place seethes with livestock farming.

Fruit farming should be conducted more intensively and scientifically so as to increase fruit production, and production in vegetable greenhouses and at mushroom farms across the country normalized, for the benefit of the people.

The comprehensive mechanization of the rural economy should be promoted in real earnest, with the aim of raising the rate of mechanization of farm work to 60-70 per cent as quickly as possible. Farm machine factories should upgrade their equipment and production lines and mass-produce highly efficient farm machines and their parts, so that the buzzing of domestically-produced machinery is heard at every socialist cooperative farm. Cooperative farms should increase the operating rate of their farm machines and press ahead with the mechanization of farming processes in a big way.

On the fishing front, we should add lustre to the history of “gold seas” by making a leap forward.

This sector should hit the target set by the Party for aquatic production.

Scientific fishing guarantees a good catch. Fishing units should upgrade their boats and equipment, introduce cutting-edge science and technology in establishing a perfect system of weather forecasting, command at sea, fish processing, equipment and power monitoring and ship repair, and endeavour to catch fish all the year round, so as to land the biggest possible hauls. Labour-saving and water-saving methods should be introduced into fish farming, offshore and cage-net fish farming widely conducted, and the area of offshore cultivation of shellfish and seaweed expanded and its methods improved.

Light industry should be developed rapidly.

This sector should build up its factories as models in the era of the knowledge economy, rely on locally available raw and other materials, and boost production so as to satisfy the people’s demands for consumer goods. Efforts should be channelled into developing new products and improving quality so as to produce a variety of international-standard light industrial goods in larger quantities. By embodying the spirit of the historic Changsong Joint Conference, local areas should organize their work scrupulously so that they manage their economy by their own efforts and develop it in a unique way.

All sectors and units of the national economy should bring about a surge in production by identifying and tapping all reserves and potential and conducting a dynamic technical innovation drive and socialist emulation campaign.

We should conduct vigorous land administration work.

The forest restoration campaign should be steadily promoted, according to yearly plans, so as to transform all the mountains in the country into “gold mountains,” into “treasure mountains.” Tree nurseries should be built in a cost-effective way and the production of saplings should be made a priority. Service personnel and all other people should turn out in the campaign to plant and cultivate trees in line with the scientific and technical requirements and in a responsible manner.

Environmental protection work should be improved so as to protect and increase the country’s resources and keep its air, rivers and seas completely free from pollution.

We should expand and develop our external economic relations.

In foreign trade, we should maintain our credit-worthiness, eliminate bias, and improve our trade structure in such a way as to increase the proportion of processed goods export and the trade in technology and services. Equity and contractual joint ventures should be formed on the standpoint of Juche and in a profitable way so as to contribute to introducing advanced technologies and developing the national economy. A favourable climate and good conditions for investment should be created in our economic development zones in order to revitalize their operation, and wide-scale tourism should be encouraged.

In order to bring about a turning point in the construction of an economic giant, the state should enhance its functions as the organizer of economic work and establish full-scale economic management methods of our style that embody the Juche idea.

The state should provide unified guidance over and strategic management of economic work in a responsible manner. The Cabinet, the country’s economic command centre, should resolutely break with expediency, formalism and defeatism and, as the body that has assumed responsibility for economic work before the Party and people, work out a strategy for developing the national economy and stage-by-stage plans in a down-to-earth way and in accordance with the Party’s lines and policies, organizing economic work to the last detail to implement them and making persistent efforts to carry them through. It should plan and direct economic work in such a way as to revitalize the economy overall while concentrating efforts on the main link in the whole chain. In keeping with the requirements of the Cabinet-responsibility system and the Cabinet-centred system, the country’s overall economic work should be placed under the control of the Cabinet and all the economic sectors and units should establish strict discipline and order by which they work in accordance with the Cabinet’s unified planning and direction.

The socialist system of responsible business operation must be properly enforced. Factories, enterprises and cooperative organizations should work out reasonable management strategies in keeping with the requirements of this system and conduct business activities on their own initiative and in a creative manner so as to normalize and expand production. The state should take steps to provide enterprises with all the conditions they need to exercise their vested management rights without a hitch.

The building of an economic giant is a gigantic and worthwhile undertaking to generate well-being for the people, and its prospects are rosy. We should, without fail, build a socialist economic giant where the people enjoy every blessing by launching a daring offensive and all-people death-defying campaign with confidence in final victory and dauntless courage.

Building a civilized power

Comrades,

The construction of a civilized socialist power is one of the major targets in building a powerful socialist country. The civilized power we are building is a country where socialist culture will develop in a comprehensive way and where the people, possessed of a high level of creativity and culture, will create and enjoy the highest quality and standard of civilization.

We should promote the development of a civilized socialist power with the aim of making all the people powerful builders of socialism who have a wealth of knowledge and high cultural attainments, and providing them with the conditions and environment for leading an affluent, civilized life to their heart’s content.

Educational work should be developed in order to make ours a country of education and talents.

A country’s civilization is guaranteed by its educational level, and our state’s future hinges on how educational work is done. In recent years public interest in education has grown and we have achieved a great deal of successes in improving the system and content of education as well as its conditions and environment. However, the overall level of education, the level of general secondary education in particular, has failed to attain even half the level the Party requires.

We should bring up the younger generations as comprehensively developed talents who are prepared politically and ideologically and are highly creative, morally sound and physically fit.

We should further improve the education system so that our country becomes a talent power and all the people are well-versed in science and technology.

School organization should be further improved so that, in the period of general secondary education, students can be trained into the country’s able talents who are equipped with the essentials of a revolutionary world outlook, exemplary general secondary knowledge and at least one modern skill. Education should be conducted in various forms and in a substantial way to suit the economic and geographical features of the particular region and the individual character of each student.

Today the demand for talent is growing with each passing day, as is the standard of talent required. Universities and colleges should produce large numbers of world-famous scholars. They should do so by setting up a rational education system that serves the purpose of training both academic and practical talents and by developing our continuous education system. The work should be continued to complete the vocational education system.

The teacher training system should be improved. Colleges of education and teacher training colleges need to be affiliated to their regional universities so that they can make effective use of their educational and scientific staff and educational facilities in training teachers. Faculties of education at leading universities and colleges should enhance their role in order to help teachers gain high pedagogical qualifications, and greater efforts should be directed to refresher courses for serving teachers in order to raise their level steadily.

The study-while-you-work system should be developed in accordance with the requirement that all the people be well-versed in science and technology.

The number of part-time institutions of learning, including factory, farm and fishermen’s colleges, should be increased and the standard of the education they offer enhanced in order to make higher education accessible to a larger number of working people. In particular, the distance education system must be further improved so as to bring its advantages into fuller play. Education through TV and other mass media should also be of a high enough standard. Then all the working people can use a lifetime of learning to contribute to our country’s prosperity. The content and methods of education should be consistently improved.

In general secondary education, while giving precedence to political and ideological education, the curricula should be improved and rounded out, and the proportion of experiments, practical work and skills training raised so that students can acquire an extensive knowledge of nature and society and increase their intellectual, practical and self-dependent capabilities. We should act decisively to remove the distinctions between town and countryside in the level of secondary education.

Universities and colleges should make the content of education practical, comprehensive and up-to-date. In this way they can help students develop their intellectual potential to the greatest extent possible, gain new and useful knowledge faster and put it to wide use. Sectoral and regional universities and vocational colleges should draw up and implement proper teaching programmes so as to train able personnel for particular sectors.

By thoroughly applying at every stage of education the heuristic teaching method advanced by the great leaders, basic education, professional education and scientific and technical education can be targeted at the development of the creative abilities of students, and not simply the provision of knowledge. The method of assessing students’ efficiency must be improved so as to heighten their enthusiasm for learning. And it is important to ensure that university graduates obtain professional and technical qualifications by working in a workplace related to their specialist field for a certain period of time.

The material and technical foundations of the education sector should be raised to the world level through a radical overhaul of the educational conditions and environment. The state should prioritize education and increase investment in the sector systematically, and the whole society should give positive assistance to the sector. Universities and other educational institutions at all levels should equip themselves with e-libraries and modern bases for conducting scientific research, experiments and internships, and operate them briskly.

Kim Il Sung University and other leading universities in our country should be developed into centres of education and scientific research and hubs of international academic exchange, becoming a match for the world’s first-rate universities.

The socialist health service requires further development.

Our country’s socialist health care system established by the great leaders is the ultimate people-oriented public health system. It enables everyone to work and lead a happy life in good health, free from worries about medical treatment.

By developing the public health service we can increase the average life expectancy of the population, reduce the prevalence of infectious diseases and bring other health indices into line with those of the world’s most advanced countries, and provide the people with more hygienic living conditions and a healthier environment.

The Party’s policy on preventive medicine should be implemented thoroughly.

The public health sector should build modern hygienic and anti-epidemic establishments, focus on the prevention of infectious diseases, and encourage all hospitals to provide proper preventive care just as they do at specialist centres to reduce morbidity as far as possible. It should boost the district doctor system to ensure that medical workers visit households and workplaces under their charge and take preventive steps against all types of disease in consideration of the ages and constitutional characteristics of the residents and working people, thus acting responsibly to protect their health.

The quality of medical services needs to be improved. Advanced methods of diagnosis and treatment should be introduced widely in keeping with the latest trends in health care. Western medicine and Koryo medicine should be closely combined, the telemedicine system completed, and high-quality first aid and other medical services guaranteed.

Medical science and technology should be developed rapidly, and the supply of materials to the public health sector improved. New areas of medical science and technology where there is urgent practical need should be explored. Koryo medicine should be put on a scientific basis and the latest developments in medical science and technology introduced proactively. Pharmaceutical and medical appliance factories should be modernized, and they should produce efficacious medicines, advanced medical facilities and appliances, and medical supplies to satisfy the demand.

County people’s hospitals should be renovated to make them medical service centres for the particular area and adequate materials should be supplied to ri people’s hospitals and clinics so that they can take responsible care of residents’ health. Building a sports power is a key task in building a civilized socialist power.

A sports power is a country that enhances its reputation, prospers and grows stronger on the basis of sports. We should step up the building of a sports power with the aim of consolidating our national strength, cultivating the resourcefulness and mettle of the nation and demonstrating the prestige and honour of Juche Korea to the world.

We need to raise our specialist sporting techniques to the world level as soon as possible, make sports a mass, everyday activity, and improve the scientific level of sports. The sports sector should intensify training and perfect our superior competitive tactics. It should create successive, fresh amazing legendary tales of heroic Korea in international competitions, and thus win Asian and world championships. Schools should improve physical education, and institutions, enterprises and cooperative farms conduct brisk sporting activities, so that the whole country seethes with enthusiasm for sports.

Putting sports on a scientific basis will give impetus to building a sports power. In all its realms, ranging from training and competition to developing reserves and producing sports equipment and materials, the sports sector should conduct its work on the basis of modern science and technology. In addition, sports science should be developed to suit the Koreans’ constitutional characteristics.

It is important to bring about a general flourishing of socialist art and literature.

Socialist art and literature help people to develop a proper outlook on the revolution and life, to nurture ennobling and fine mental and moral traits, and to take an active part in the revolution and construction. They also play an important leading role in social civilization.

At present, when the cause of the Juche revolution is at a historic turning point, successive signal successes are being achieved and all sectors are dashing forward at a Mallima speed in our country. The sector of art and literature, however, has yet to produce many fine works of art and literature that can make the whole society burn with enthusiasm for the revolution and struggle, and can inspire all the people with great passion. The basic mission of our art and literature is to imbue all the people with the Party’s ideology and intention and rouse them to carry forward the cause of the Juche revolution.

Officials, creative workers and artistes in this sector should guard the leader and the revolution through the production of masterpieces and become standard-bearers on the ideological front who take the lead in supporting our Party for ever by inheriting the fighting traditions established by the preceding generation of artistic and literary workers who served the Party as point-men and buglers.

The sector of art and literature should create elaborate masterpieces that are profound in their depiction of the glorious revolutionary history, undying exploits and noble virtues of the great leaders. It should produce large numbers of excellent novels, poems and film and drama scripts which provide the service personnel and other people with ideological and spiritual sustenance and encourage them to redouble their efforts. The sector of cinematic art should free itself from its stagnation as soon as possible and effect an upsurge in film-making in the new century. By doing so it can play the pacesetter role in ushering in a heyday of art and literature. The sectors of stage and fine arts should create and produce masterpieces which embody the Party’s ideas and theories on art and literature and its view on aesthetics, and which also appeal to the people’s aesthetic tastes and are popular among them. Mass cultural and artistic activities should be conducted briskly, with a view to raising mass-based arts to a high level, and the song of revolution, the song of struggle, should reverberate across every bustling site of socialist construction.

We should thwart the imperialists’ moves for ideological and cultural infiltration and fully maintain our socialist culture and lifestyle.

Their ideology and culture are dangerous poison that numbs the people’s minds and undermines the foundations of socialism. We should, through a revolutionary ideological and cultural offensive, smash their persistent and pernicious moves for ideological and cultural infiltration and prevent any alien ideology and culture or unnatural lifestyle from penetrating our society. We should encourage Party members, working people, youth and schoolchildren to value and positively preserve the things of our own, based on self-respect and a high sense of pride in having the finest socialist national culture. Thus we can ensure that the whole society brims over with national sentiment and a beautiful and sound socialist way of life.

Moral discipline should be tightened throughout society. If it slackens, people will fall ill mentally and, therefore, be unable to defend their socialist ideology and system, and their traditions. Education in morality should be intensified among Party members, working people, youth and schoolchildren so that beautiful human relations, in which they respect their revolutionary forerunners, teachers and seniors, love their comrades and promote family and communal harmony, can flourish. That everyone observes public morality and social order on a voluntary basis and, especially, uses refined and cultured language–this should be an established trend in our society.

We should build larger numbers of, and more splendid, modern bases for cultural and leisure activities, as appropriate to the appearance of a civilized socialist power.

We should establish the finest possible cultural, sports and other welfare service facilities, such as theatres, halls of culture and gymnasiums, and spruce up the parks, pleasure grounds and scenic spots in different parts of the country, so that the working people, youth and children can enjoy varied cultural and leisure activities to their heart’s content.

Consolidating political and military might

Comrades,

In order to accomplish our cause by stepping up the building of a powerful socialist country we should further consolidate the country’s strength as a politico-ideological and military power.

Great political and military strength is a symbol of a nation’s dignity and capability, and is a decisive guarantee of our victory in the showdown with the imperialist forces and in socialist construction. Only by continuously building up the country’s political and military might can we consolidate its strategic position, make a leap forward in developing the economy and culture, and bring forward the cause of national reunification.

We should keep on strengthening the country’s political and military might as the central task in building socialism.

We should build up the country’s might as a politico-ideological power in every way possible.

We should consolidate the political system of the socialist state and give full scope to its effectiveness.

Our country’s might as a politico-ideological power is based on the advantages and stability of its political system as a socialist state. We should consolidate and develop the political system of the socialist state in order to guarantee the political independence of the masses of the people and cement the politico-ideological unity of our society.

All the activities of our people’s government organs should be geared to championing and realizing the demands and interests of the masses.

The people’s government organs should fully discharge their role as the representative of the people’s right to independence, the orchestrator of their creative abilities, the administrator responsible for their livelihood and the guardian of their independent and creative life. They should ensure that the people take an active part in state administration and socio-political activities so that they exercise their political rights as genuine masters of the state and society and add lustre to the worthwhile life they are leading for society and the collective.

They should also provide the people with the conditions for leading an affluent and cultured life, working safely and taking enough rest, and make sure that they enjoy the maximum social benefits, so that they all regard the socialist system as the cradle of their true life, and work with devotion for socialism. They should show close concern for orphans’ primary and secondary schools, baby homes, orphanages and rest homes so that the orphans and the elderly with no one to look after them can live free from worries under the care of the state. They should conduct effective education in law observance and tighten legal controls to ensure that the people voluntarily observe the state’s laws and regulations, including the Socialist Constitution.

We should build up the harmonious whole of the Party and the masses.

The harmonious whole of the Party and the masses is a source of the viability of our Party and a guarantee of the invincibility of socialism. Party members and other working people should arm themselves firmly with Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism, be closely united behind the Party in ideology, purpose and moral obligation, and advance along the same road, following our Party for ever with the unshakeable faith that they acknowledge it alone. Young people in particular should steadfastly inherit the tradition of single-hearted unity, taking the lead in defending our Party to the death and demonstrating the heroic mettle of an advance force in implementing its revolutionary cause.

Party and working people’s organizations and government organs should orient and subordinate all their undertakings to strengthening single-hearted unity. They should maintain the principle of placing the people’s demands and interests before anything else, making selfless, devoted efforts for the good of them and resolving all problems by believing in and relying on them. Party officials should be prudent in dealing with issues related to the people’s destiny, i.e., their political integrity. They should relieve any sign of mental anguish and resolve any problems arising in their work and life in a responsible manner, so as to unite the broad sections of the people more firmly around the Party.

Officials of the judicial, procuratorial and security organs should promptly detect and frustrate the various schemes by the enemy to undermine our socialism from within, thus staunchly defending our ideology, system, class position and single-hearted unity.

We should strengthen in every way the country’s might as a military power, holding fast to the line of the Songun revolution as our permanent strategic line.

In order to achieve the victory of the socialist cause in the protracted, acute confrontation with the imperialists, we should invariably hold aloft the banner of Songun and direct great efforts to building up the country’s revolutionary armed forces and defence capabilities. The development of the country’s revolutionary armed forces and defence capabilities precisely means strengthening our Party; the country’s dignity and its people’s destiny are guaranteed by its revolutionary armed forces and defence capabilities.

The People’s Army is the army of the Workers’ Party of Korea. It is a death-defying corps in the struggle for defending socialism and a shock brigade for building a powerful socialist country.

Modelling the entire army on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism is the general task to be consistently undertaken in army building. Modelling the entire army on Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism is essential in developing it into the eternal army of Comrade Kim Il Sung, Comrade Kim Jong Il and the Party, and in fully preparing it as the powerful revolutionary army of Mt Paektu that is capable of defeating any enemy, however formidable.

The Party’s leadership is the lifeblood of the People’s Army, and the People’s Army must be pervaded with the ideology and intentions of the Party alone. The officers and men of the People’s Army should become genuine revolutionary comrades, revolutionary comrades-in-arms, who share their ideology, purpose and destiny at all times with the Party Central Committee, whatever the adversity; they should be fortresses and shields defending the Party Central Committee to the death. The People’s Army should firmly establish within itself a revolutionary military climate in which all its service personnel move as one under the command of the Party and implement its orders and directives unconditionally, even at the risk of their lives. It should maintain, as its two major tasks, strengthening itself politically and ideologically and making itself morally sound and step up Party political work. In this way the entire army can be developed into a vanguard force that is imbued with the Party’s monolithic ideology and united firmly with indomitable faith and moral obligation.

It should defend the socialist country reliably and concentrate all its efforts on perfecting its preparations for a possible war, true to the Party’s strategic intention.

The essence of its training should be to do it in a real-war atmosphere and put it on a scientific and modern footing, and the People’s Army should conduct training amid fierce flames as befits the army of Mt Paektu. In this way all the service personnel can be more firmly prepared as a-match-for-a-hundred combatants who are trained in our Party’s military strategies, ideas and tactics and capable of fulfilling with credit their combat missions, even in the worst conditions and circumstances. It should maintain full alert to cope with the US imperialists’ and south Korean bellicose forces’ reckless war manoeuvres against the DPRK and, should the enemy unleash a war, it must punish the aggressors mercilessly and achieve the historic cause of national reunification.

By applying the anti-Japanese guerrillas’ methods of commanding and managing their units, it should establish a strict military ethos, perfect its features as a regular armed force and effect a turn in resolving the problem of soldiers’ living conditions. It should push forward the movements of winning the titles of O Jung Hup-led 7th Regiment and Guards Unit, so as to make all its units as effective as the 7th Regiment during the anti-Japanese war and the Guards units during the Fatherland Liberation War.

It should continue to display its might as the main force and shock brigade in building a powerful socialist country.

The Korean People’s Internal Security Forces should sharpen the sword with which they defend the leader, our system and the people. It should establish a strict command system and a steel-strong military ethos with which mercilessly to squash, at the first signs, any manoeuvrings by the class enemies and hostile elements to undermine the Party and socialist system and harm the people’s life and property. The people’s security organs should improve their work decisively and adopt comprehensive measures for preventing incidents and accidents so as to ensure stability in the regions and areas under their charge. They should also do a lot of good for the benefit of the people.

Great efforts should be directed to developing the defence industry.

Developing the defence industry is vital to the people’s destiny and national security. Military hardware is being upgraded to an incomparable degree in the world, changing the form of war, and the situation on the Korean peninsula is being aggravated on a daily basis. This reality requires us to step up the modernization of our military hardware.

The defence science sector should place the defence industry on a highly Juche-oriented, self-supporting, modern and scientific footing and, on this basis, develop larger quantities of modern, powerful military hardware of our own style that is precise, light, unmanned and intelligent. In this way we can achieve a breakthrough in the event of a great war for national reunification. We should raise the national air defence system to a higher strategic level. We must defend our country’s territorial airspace more firmly by revamping the air-raid warning system and covering the entire land with a comprehensive network of anti-aircraft weaponry.

By learning from the fighting spirit of the workers of Kunja-ri during the war, the defence industry should ensure that its officials, workers and technicians live and work in the spirit of defending their leader and country to the death and the revolutionary spirit of self-reliance and self-development.

We should establish throughout society a climate of prioritizing military affairs, and make preparations for all-people resistance.

All the people should be firmly determined to settle accounts at any cost with the US imperialists, our sworn enemy, and, if war breaks out, should turn out as one in the all-people resistance to annihilate the aggressors and achieve national reunification.

Members of the Worker-Peasant Red Guards and Young Red Guards should intensify their combat and political training so as to prepare themselves politically and militarily to perform their missions with credit, whatever the combat situations. The paramilitary forces should establish an emergency mobilization system and command system, take proper precautions against possible air raids and build up the defence facilities so that their homes, villages and workplaces can be reliably defended.

We should march forward dynamically to achieve final victory in the socialist cause, with full confidence in Juche Korea’s inexhaustible strength, and with conviction and optimism in the future.

For the independent reunification of the country

Comrades,

Achieving national reunification is the most important and pressing task facing our Party, which has assumed the responsibility for the destiny of the country and nation.

During the period under review the Workers’ Party of Korea strove hard to realize the cause of national reunification, the ardent desire of all our fellow countrymen.

Our Party’s struggle for national reunification was a just struggle for the country and nation in which it endeavoured to defend the spirit of national independence, achieve national unity and open up a new era of national prosperity, despite an acute confrontation with the anti-reunification forces at home and abroad.

Having smashed the obstructive moves of the anti-reunification forces that do not want to see one Korea, our Party gave constant momentum to the national reunification movement by consistently adhering to the Juche-oriented line of reunification advanced by Comrade Kim Il Sung.

Our country must not remain divided; it must be reunified as one Korea without fail in line with the unanimous will and demand of the nation and by its own efforts–this is the Juche-oriented line of national reunification which Comrade Kim Il Sung put forward and to which he held fast throughout his life.

Whenever obstacles were put in the way of the country’s reunification, Comrade Kim Il Sung overcame them by putting forward magnanimous and reasonable proposals based on the spirit of national independence. Based on his ardent love for the nation and noble virtue he raised the nation’s desire for reunification to a new height and ushered in a golden age in the nationwide reunification movement. Even in the last days of his revolutionary life Comrade Kim Il Sung, who regarded the country’s reunification as the greatest patriotic cause of our nation, published the ten-point programme for the great unity of the whole nation and conducted energetic activities to unite all the Korean people into a single force for reunification. He also proposed an inter-Korean summit and worked heart and soul to make it happen.

The Workers’ Party of Korea roused all the compatriots to the struggle for national reunification, based on the idea and line of independent reunification and the plan for founding the Democratic Federal Republic of Koryo put forwarded by Comrade Kim Il Sung. Our Party made proactive efforts to ease the tension on the Korean peninsula and create a peaceful environment for independent reunification. At the same time it heightened the atmosphere for national reconciliation and unity by adopting measures for the benefit of all compatriots and through multiple layers of dialogue. Despite the changing situation and environment, it took positive steps to develop the cause of national reunification into an all-people patriotic cause, both in name and in reality, and worked hard to unite the whole nation into a single force for reunification under the banner of great national unity. Amid the flames of the nationwide struggle to achieve great national unity, the Pan-National Alliance for Korea’s Reunification embracing broad patriotic forces in the north, in the south and abroad was formed, successive reunification events were held demonstrating the nation’s resourcefulness, and the national reunification movement was further developed into a nationwide movement.

Our Party’s struggle to implement the Juche-oriented line of reunification made dynamic progress from one generation to the next under the energetic leadership of Comrade Kim Jong Il. In the course of this, solid foundations were laid for realizing the cause of national reunification.

He formulated the three principles for national reunification, the plan of founding the Democratic Federal Republic of Koryo and the ten-point programme for the great unity of the whole nation, all put forward by Comrade Kim Il Sung, as three charters for national reunification. He also presented several outstanding ideas and lines, including the five-point policy for great national unity, which illuminated the path ahead of our nation’s reunification movement. He consolidated the national strength of our Republic significantly by administering Songun politics for the country and nation. He thereby frustrated the manoeuvres of the anti-reunification forces at home and abroad to ignite a new war and provided a sure guarantee for independent national reunification.

Under his leadership our Party developed inter-Korean relations onto a higher plane and ushered in a new era of independent reunification, peace and prosperity. Thanks to his noble patriotic desire for reunification and bold decision, a north-south summit was held for the first time in the history of national division, followed by another; and the June 15 Joint Declaration and its action programme, the October 4 Declaration, were adopted, with the ideal of By Our Nation Itself at their core. These epochal events marked a historic milestone in independent reunification and brought about a turning point in its realization. The broad magnanimity and generosity of Comrade Kim Jong Il, who embraced anyone desiring national reconciliation, unity and reunification and led them along the patriotic road of reunification, represented a driving, dynamic force that accelerated the opening up and advance of the June 15 era of reunification.

Thanks to the wise leadership of Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, the peerless patriots and lodestars of reunification, the cause of national reunification could advance along the path to national independence from one decade to the next and from one century to the next, despite the complex circumstances in which separatist forces at home and abroad resorted to despicable means, and the motive force for national reunification grew strong enough to prevail over the anti-reunification forces. Inter-Korean dialogue and cooperation, contact and exchange in such fields as politics, the economy and culture gained momentum, producing precious fruits shared by the nation, to the delight of all compatriots, and solidarity and collaboration were achieved between various organizations and personages from every walk of life.

All the achievements made during the period under review by our Party and people in their struggle to promote the national reunification movement vigorously by braving all the trials of history, are a shining victory of the outstanding ideas and lines and reasonable proposals for independent national reunification put forward by Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, and a proud fruit of their tireless, energetic leadership.

Comrades,

We should pull down the barrier of division as soon as possible and open up a broad avenue to national reunification, in keeping with the unanimous desire and demand of the entire Korean nation.

Our nation, though proud of its time-honoured history of 5 000 years and its brilliant culture, has suffered the pain and misfortune of national division caused by foreign forces for over 70 years–this is a disgrace to the nation, and we can no longer put up with it or tolerate it. The longer the division of the nation lasts, the greater the suffering and calamity our fellow countrymen will experience and the graver the danger of war on the Korean peninsula will be, with catastrophic consequences for our nation. At a time when other countries and nations are competing fiercely to develop, in pursuit of their own interests, our nation remains divided into north and south, which are at variance with and pitted against each other. This is a suicidal situation in which the nation’s coordinated development is prevented and outside forces are allowed to profit from our misfortune.

We must not allow national division to last any longer, but reunify the country within our generation without fail. It is the firm determination and will of our Party to achieve the country’s independent reunification without fail by fulfilling the lifelong wish and instructions of Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il.

The Workers’ Party of Korea is following the Juche-oriented line of national reunification advanced by the great leaders. This most reasonable line is based on the comprehensive spirit of national independence, which holds that our nation must reunify the country not by depending on others but on its own responsibility and through a concerted effort of all the fellow countrymen.

This line is fully embodied in the three charters for national reunification clarified by the great leaders. We should open the way to reunification by consistently adhering to those three charters, which synthesize the aspirations and demands of all the compatriots and whose vitality has been proved in practice. In our struggle for national reunification we should hold high the banner of national independence and great national unity. National independence is the main spirit of the three charters for national reunification and the lifeblood of the reunification movement. Whenever the situation on and around the Korean peninsula grows more complex and acute, we should hold fast to the principle of independence in resolving the reunification issue, which is a national issue.

We should maintain a steadfast viewpoint and stand, iron nerve and confidence in settling the national reunification issue by our nation itself, its master.

Our nation is not the weak country of the past which was deprived of its sovereignty and subjected to ruin and division by outside forces because it lacked strength, but a resourceful and powerful nation that can achieve the country’s reunification and shape its destiny by its own efforts. The foreign forces have no desire to see our nation become one and grow powerful. This is a bitter lesson taught by the long history of national division.

None of the Korean compatriots in the north, in the south and abroad should tolerate the intervention and arbitrary actions of the foreign forces in attempting to divide our nation for ever and lord it over the Korean peninsula and the region. And they must resolve the national reunification issue on the principle of national self-determination and in conformity with the nation’s demand for independence.

Touring foreign countries to beg for a solution to an internal issue of the nation, the issue of its reunification, is a betrayal of the country and nation. It sells out its dignity and interests and is an anti-reunification act. National reunification can never be achieved through the approval of others or with their help. The south Korean authorities should make a bold decision to rid themselves of their pro-US, sycophantic tendency and humiliating policy of toeing the US line, and desist from the shameful behaviour of harming their fellow countrymen in collusion with foreign forces. They should worship their nation alone, believe in its strength alone and discuss the reunification issue with their compatriots alone. We should categorically reject all acts of sycophancy and dependence on foreign forces, which gnaw at the consciousness of national independence and undermine the principle of national self-development.

We should give full play to the might of great national unity.

The cause of national reunification itself is a cause to relink the blood vessels of the nation and achieve national unity. Nothing is more important in bringing forward the day of national reunification than achieving the great unity of the nation. Great national unity precisely means the country’s reunification and a powerful reunified Korea.

The whole nation should place the great goal of national reunification before anything else, becoming a single united force, irrespective of differences in ideology, ideals and political view. The differences in ideology and system between the north and the south must not be the cause of distrust and conflict among fellow countrymen; nor must isms and doctrines advocated by different classes and strata and their respective interests impede national unity.

All political parties and organizations in the north and the south should promote contact, exchange, solidarity and collaboration, and thus create a favourable climate for reconciliation and unity. Even though they are living in different places, the compatriots in the north, in the south and abroad should join the mainstream of great national unity with a single desire for reunification and with patriotism, as befits members of the Korean nation.

They must not tolerate any separatist and divisive acts perpetrated by foreign forces to obstruct reconciliation and the unity of our nation and incite distrust and antagonism among fellow countrymen, or any other acts that abet them.

They should treasure and support the programmes and traditions of great national unity and patriotism that have been created through the protracted struggle to achieve independence and the reunification of the country. Our Party’s principle of great national unity means, in essence, that on the patriotic road of reunification it will not hesitate to join hands and share its ideals with anyone who cherishes a national conscience, even if he or she used to oppose reunification.

We will make positive efforts to achieve great national unity, the great foundation of national reunification, by overcoming all the misunderstanding, distrust, confrontation and conflict caused by national division.

Efforts should be made to ensure peace and security on the Korean peninsula and achieve reunification under a federal system.

Ensuring peace and security on the peninsula is an issue vital to the destiny of our nation and an essential prerequisite for the country’s reunification. The peninsula remains in a state of temporary ceasefire, and the prevailing volatile situation threatens the existence and development of our fellow countrymen and hinders national reunification.

Over the last 60 or so years since the signing of the Armistice Agreement the United States has persisted in sending huge forces of aggression to south Korea and the surrounding region, and conducted frenzied nuclear war exercises against the north year after year, aggravating tension on the peninsula and in the region. It is now clamouring about a “threat” by taking issue with our self-defensive measures designed to increase our defence capabilities, and with our peaceful space exploration; this is merely an excuse to justify its aggressive policy of hostility towards the DPRK and its strategy to achieve hegemony in Asia. The United States should squarely recognize the strategic position of our Republic, now that it has joined the front rank of nuclear powers, and the trend of the times; it should scrap its anachronistic policy of hostility towards the DPRK, replace the Armistice Agreement with a peace treaty and withdraw its forces of aggression and war materiel from south Korea.

The south Korean authorities should put a complete stop to the reckless political and military provocations and war drills that they launch, toeing the US line, and which are targeted against fellow countrymen and pose a threat to peace and security on the Korean peninsula.

The north and the south should make joint efforts to achieve federal-style reunification based on a pan-national agreement.

The country can be reunified by either peaceful or non-peaceful means. We are ready to use either of these means, but we have made every possible endeavour to achieve peaceful reunification because we do not want to see another war break out on our own land and the Korean nation experience another holocaust. This is why we are insisting on federal-style reunification.

In the historic June 15 Joint Declaration the north and the south acknowledged that the north’s proposal for a federal system at a low level and the south’s proposal for a commonwealth system share common ground, and they agreed to work for national reunification along those lines. However, the south Korean authorities have gone back on the pledge they made before their compatriots. They have rejected our sincere efforts and insisted on their preposterous daydream of a “unification of systems,” even though it can never under any circumstances be realized.

They are seeking reunification based on their own ideology and system, in disregard of their dialogue partner’s ideology and system–this is tantamount to a declaration that they do not want reunification, but war. Even though the people-centred socialist system of our style is most advantageous, neither have we tried to force it on south Korea, nor do we have any intention of doing so.

Over the last decades hostile forces have been raising a clamour about the “collapse” of the DPRK, yet our ideology and system have grown more solid; it is none other than the reactionary and unpopular ruling system in south Korea and its anti-reunification, confrontation policy that are doomed to collapse and destruction.

The north and the south should recognize and tolerate each other’s existing ideologies and systems and, on this basis, elect to found a federal state, reflecting the desire and demand of the whole nation.

The south Korean authorities should abandon their forlorn hope of the “unification of systems” and switch to federal-style reunification, as they have stated they would at home and abroad.

If, clinging to their absurd theory, they choose to unleash a war, we will respond with a great just war to crush the anti-reunification forces mercilessly and accomplish the historic cause of national reunification, the long-cherished desire of the nation.

National independence, great national unity, peace and a federal system–this is the policy our Party is following in its struggle to pave the way for the country’s reunification by implementing the three charters for national reunification. We should uphold the banner of national independence and great national unity, and strive hard to ensure lasting peace on the Korean peninsula and achieve reunification of a federal style. In this way, we can build an independent and prosperous reunified state at the earliest possible date, as all our compatriots desire.

The most pressing issue in achieving the country’s independent reunification is to bring about a radical improvement in inter-Korean relations.

At present the south Korean authorities are blindly following the United States in its barbarous hostility towards the DPRK. This is cranking up the tension on the Korean peninsula and driving inter-Korean relations towards dire catastrophe. Branding as a “provocation” and “threat” our line of simultaneously promoting economic construction and the upbuilding of the nuclear forces and our just associated measures, the south Korean bellicose forces have embarked on a dangerous military adventure, fomenting extreme antipathy and hostility towards us. The precious gains common to the nation, which offered hope and optimism for reunification to all the Korean compatriots with the advent of the new century, have been obliterated and inter-Korean relations are deteriorating, to reach a critical pass. This is lamentable to everyone.

Without addressing this acute situation that is causing grave concern inside and outside the country, our nation cannot take even a single step forward towards the goal of reunification and it will, in the long run, end up being drawn into a whirlwind of war and suffering appalling disaster.

The north and the south should respect each other and, as partners in national reunification, work together to open a new phase in improving inter-Korean relations and reunifying the country.

Recognizing and respecting each other is the starting-point and a precondition for achieving reconciliation and establishing trust between the two sides. Inter-Korean relations have been plunged into the worst-ever state of confrontation, owing to the south Korean authorities’ policy of hostility towards their fellow countrymen. The south Korean authorities should abandon their attitude of confrontation with their fellow countrymen and adopt a proper attitude towards their dialogue partner. They should not expect “change” from the latter or seek the “collapse of its system,” but instead adopt a sincere stand on national concord and reunification.

The north and the south should desist from all provocative and hostile acts if they are to respect and cooperate with each other as partners in national reunification. Committing acts of hostility towards the dialogue partner is the main cause of the distrust and conflict and the chief obstacle to improving bilateral relations.

The radio broadcasts that amount to psychological warfare, the scattering of leaflets and all the other hostile acts that are going on along the Military Demarcation Line aimed at offending and vilifying the dialogue partner, must be stopped immediately. All the legal and institutional mechanisms detrimental to reconciliation and unity between the north and the south must be eliminated, and practical measures adopted that are beneficial to promoting bilateral relations. The south Korean authorities should neither persecute nor repress those who are striving for national concord, unity and reunification, unjustly accusing them of “benefiting the enemy” and “following the north.” Instead, they should respect and encourage their righteous actions.

The north and the south should work to ease military tension and settle all issues through dialogue and negotiations.

If the channels of communication between the military authorities of the two sides remain cut and the critical state of military confrontation persists as now, then armed conflict may break out at any time and in any place, and it will be impossible to prevent it from escalating into full-scale war. The north and the south should adopt substantial measures to ease the military tension and avert the danger of conflict, particularly along the Military Demarcation Line and in the hotspots on the West Sea. Once a climate has been created for building military confidence, they should expand the scope of these measures.

Dialogue and negotiations are the basic way of resolving the issues arising in inter-Korean relations in keeping with the desires and aspirations of the nation. The current deadlock between the two sides can be easily ended through dialogue and negotiations. The north and the south should promote dialogue and negotiations at different levels and in various sectors with the aim of removing mutual misunderstanding and distrust, and make a joint effort to open the way to national reunification and common prosperity.

We recognize that the top priority in ensuring peace on the Korean peninsula and achieving reunification is for dialogue and negotiations to take place between the military authorities of the two sides. In bilateral talks the military authorities can discuss and fully resolve such issues of mutual concern as removing the danger of conflict and defusing tension in the area along the Military Demarcation Line.

If they genuinely want to improve inter-Korean relations, the south Korean authorities should stop pursuing dishonest objectives and come to the negotiating table with an earnest and sincere attitude.

We will make sincere efforts to resolve the reunification issue, a national issue, by means of bilateral talks and negotiations. In order to improve inter-Korean relations and open up an avenue to national reunification, it is necessary to respect the accords common to the nation and implement them in a consistent manner.

The three principles for national reunification, the June 15 Joint Declaration and the October 4 Declaration, which the north and the south agreed upon and announced to the whole world, are great programmes common to the nation. They should form the consistent basis in developing inter-Korean relations and resolving the issue of national reunification, since no one has the right to negate or ignore them unilaterally.

If the north-south agreements are rendered null and void on account of a change in the situation or of government, no bilateral agreement reached in the future will serve any purpose. Inter-Korean relations would not have experienced the twists and turns, and great strides would have been made towards carrying out the cause of national reunification, if the north-south agreements had been implemented faithfully, regardless of regime change in south Korea.

The north and the south should respect and implement the historic agreements that they signed before the nation and the world. The south Korean authorities should, though belatedly, acknowledge the north-south agreements and implement them, in compliance with the unanimous demand of the fellow countrymen.

The countries responsible for Korea’s division and its neighbours should refrain from inciting distrust and confrontation between the north and the south and should act in ways beneficial to Korea’s reunification.

The United States, the main culprit in the division of our nation and the prevention of its reunification, should discontinue its sanction-and-stifle schemes against the DPRK, and stop egging the south Korean authorities on to step up inter-Korean confrontation; in short, it should stop interfering on the Korean peninsula.

Japan should abandon its ambition of reinvading the Korean peninsula, reflect on the past crimes it committed against our nation, and apologize for them. And it must not place obstacles in the way of Korea’s reunification.

Our neighbours should respect the sovereignty of our country and play a positive role in ensuring that the issue of Korea’s reunification can be resolved independently and peacefully in line with the demand and will of our nation.

Our Party will, in the future, too, perform its noble mission in a responsible manner to improve inter-Korean relations and hasten independent reunification, so as to fulfil the demands and interests of the whole nation.

Comrades,

There is nothing to fear and nothing that is impossible if the north and the south share one purpose and combine their efforts. When reunified, our country will demonstrate its grandeur as a dignified world power with an 80 million population and enormous national strength, a nation with an advanced civilization that is superior to others thanks to its indomitable national spirit and unexcelled resourcefulness, and a nation of justice playing the leading role in ensuring peace in Northeast Asia and the rest of the world.

Although obstacles and difficulties stand in the way to the reunification of the country, no force can thwart our Party and people in their struggle to accomplish the historic cause of national reunification.

Filled with confidence in and optimism for the certainty of our victory, we will wage a dynamic struggle to translate Comrade Kim Il Sung’s and Comrade Kim Jong Il’s noble, patriotic intentions and wishes into reality; by so doing, we will surely build a dignified and prosperous reunified country on this land.