KIM JONG
IL
Discourse
Published in Rodong Sinmun, the Organ of the C.C of the Workers¡¯ Party of
¡¡
Seventy
years has elapsed since the dawn of the Korean revolution, which has advanced
under the banner of the Juche idea. In this noble revolution several generations
have shed their precious sweat and blood for people¡¯s freedom, national
independence and sovereignty and for the victory of socialism. A large number of
revolutionaries have performed distinguished services and made brilliant
achievements.
Our people
respect the revolutionaries of the previous generations as their revolutionary
seniors, set great store by their spirit and achievements in the struggle, and
are carrying faithfully forward and developing the revolutionary cause pioneered
by them. This is a noble morality developed by our people from generation to
generation, as well as a basic factor that ensures the steady, triumphant
development of our revolution even in the most complex
situations.
The history
of the world socialist movement provides the serious lesson that a revolution
advances victoriously when revolutionary forefathers are respected and their
accomplishments are preserved and developed, and that a revolution is abandoned
and frustrated when revolutionary predecessors are betrayed and their
accomplishments are negated. In several countries that had built socialism in
the past, opportunists occupying the leadership of the parties and states
defamed their revolutionary predecessors and obliterated their achievements. In
consequence of their traitorous acts, the reputation of communists has been
damaged, the image of socialism clouded, and the socialist system itself has
ended in collapse.
Establishing
a correct viewpoint and attitude towards revolutionary seniors is most important
for the development of the socialist movement.
Only when the red flag of the
revolution raised by the revolutionary forerunners is carried forward down
through generations can the cause of independence for the popular masses, the
socialist cause, emerge victorious.
1
¡¡
To respect
its pioneers is the demand of the revolution and the noble moral obligation of
revolutionaries.
Socialism
advances to consummation as the successors carry on and develop down through
generations what their predecessors achieved for the revolution. Their attitude
towards their revolutionary forefathers means their attitude towards the
revolution. It is an important matter relating to the destiny of the
revolution.
Holding
revolutionary seniors in esteem means putting forward in every way the
revolutionaries who devoted everything to the struggle, championing and
preserving their revolutionary ideas and achievements and carrying forward and
developing these ideas and achievements. The predecessors¡¯ noble revolutionary
ideas and the results of their arduous struggle constitute the gains of the
revolution and precious wealth for carrying out the revolution. Only when all
succeeding generations champion, preserve and develop their predecessors¡¯ ideas
and accomplishments can the revolutionary cause continue to advance to brilliant
consummation. Taking a nihilistic approach to their predecessors¡¯ struggle and
achievements, or denying them, amounts to retreating from the road of revolution
and betraying it. Vilifying revolutionary seniors and defaming their ideas and
accomplishments means disgracing the revolution and grovelling at the foot of
the enemy of the revolution. The working-class party must, with unbroken
consistency, unfailing loyalty to the revolution and unshakable confidence in
this cause, carry forward and develop the socialism pioneered and advanced by
the revolutionary predecessors. It must pay close attention to giving prominence
to the revolutionary pioneers and to educating the people in the ideas and
through the accomplishments of these pioneers.
The
attitude towards revolutionary forefathers reflects the attitude of
revolutionaries towards the revolution, as well as their morality.
Morality is
a basic criterion for defining the qualities of a revolutionary. A revolutionary
must hold not only revolutionary ideals as his belief, but also be equipped with
genuine human qualities supported by noble moral principles. Conscience and the
sense of obligation are laudable virtues unique to the human race; these are the
source of the spiritual force that encourages people to conscientious and noble
deeds. Even a person with advanced ideas cannot acquire noble human qualities,
nor can he be a true revolutionary, unless he has a strong conscience and the
sense of moral obligation.
Even in the
old society, conscientious people valued morality, by which they evaluated
personality and regarded immoral behaviour as unworthy of human beings. In an
exploitative society, however, genuine morality cannot thrive or become
dominant. Individualism, which is the basis of the exploitative society, cannot
be compatible with true morality, and no relations of moral obligation can exist
between the exploiting and exploited classes. Moral hypocrisy is the true nature
of the exploiting class, and moral corruption is an inevitable product of the
bourgeois society.
The most
ennobling human qualities belong to the communists, who love their fellow people
and fight in the cause of independence for the popular masses. Love for and
trust in people are the basis of genuine human relations, the basis of human
morality. Promoting the benefit of others rather than of oneself and working
with devotion for one¡¯s society and collective are an expression of a person¡¯s
noble morality. Because they treasure and love people and place social and
collective interests above those of an individual, communists struggle with
devotion for the good of their fellow people, their society and collective, not
for selfish interests or personal fame. Communist revolutionaries love their
comrades and fellow people with noble feelings of love for humanity, and
devotedly struggle solely for the people, for their independence, with
revolutionary conscience and a lofty sense of moral obligation. A man who shuts
his eyes to the people¡¯s interests, who is devoid of love for them and lacks
conscience, loyalty and sympathy, cannot be a communist or a
revolutionary.
Regarding
revolutionary pioneers with respect is an inviolable revolutionary obligation.
In spite of the difference in seniority in the relationship between seniors and
juniors in the revolution, their relations are the comradeship of
revolutionaries who fight in the same cause. The relationship between parents
and children is kinship resulting mainly from actual physical birth, whereas the
relationship among revolutionaries is the comradeship of fighters who share the
same ideas, hardships and successes on the road of revolution and exalt their
socio-political integrity, which is more precious to them than their physical
lives. The kinship among revolutionaries represents a truly communist human
relationship based on comradely love and revolutionary obligation. Communist
revolutionaries¡¯ outlook on morality and their moral qualities are characterized
by their regarding it as a noble duty and honour to love their comrades most
ardently and fulfil their revolutionary obligation to them. That is why
revolutionaries consider it most shameful and treacherous to betray their
comrades or to abandon conscience and loyalty in their mutual
relationship.
For the
heirs to the revolution to respect their revolutionary predecessors--the
forerunners who dedicated their lives to the revolution and left a great
heritage behind them—can be said to be a noble expression of revolutionary
morality. Our revolutionary forerunners gave their lives unhesitatingly in the
fight and made precious achievements for the country, the people and the
happiness of the coming generations, not for the sake of personal interest or
honour; our revolutionary forefathers shouted, ¡°Love the future!¡± in do-or-die
battles, or at the last moment of their lives on the gallows, precisely because
they loved the coming generations. By their heroic struggle, the revolutionary
forerunners paved the road of revolution, brought about enormous gains for the
revolution, and ensured the flowering of an independent and creative new life
for people. To respect their revolutionary predecessors, who fought devotedly
for those who came after, is the next generations¡¯ natural revolutionary
obligation, its noble moral duty.
The highest
representative of revolutionary elders is the leader, and loyalty to the leader
is the highest expression of the sense of revolutionary
obligation.
The leader
of the working class is the guiding intellect and leader of the revolution. The
popular masses make history, but they can hold the position of true masters of
their destiny as independent makers of history and fulfil their role as such
only when they receive the guidance of a pre-eminent leader. The leader puts
forward scientific revolutionary ideas, strategy and tactics, inspires the
masses with revolutionary consciousness and organizes them, guides the
revolutionary struggle to victory, provides people with noble socio-political
integrity and teaches them to lead honourable lives on the road of revolution.
Under his leadership tens of thousands of revolutionaries grow up, and people
come to struggle for the revolution. Under his leadership the socialist cause is
pioneered and advanced victoriously. Thanks to his noble ideas and outstanding
leadership, great revolutionary achievements are made, and the honour and
dignity of the revolutionary generations are exalted.
Carrying
forward the cause of independence for the popular masses, the cause of
socialism, means none other than the continuation of the cause of the leader.
Inheriting the ideas and achievements of the revolutionary predecessors means
inheriting the leader¡¯s revolutionary ideas and the achievements made under his
leadership. Respect for revolutionary predecessors finds typical expression in
loyalty to the leader. Being unfailingly loyal to the great leader through all
generations is the duty of revolutionaries and the highest expression of the
sense of revolutionary obligation. Revolutionaries must resolutely defend the
ideas and exploits of the leader and loyally carry forward his revolutionary
cause.
Historically,
in opposing socialism, imperialists and renegades from the revolution have
directed their attacks on the leaders of the working class and the
revolutionaries of the preceding generation. This is because socialism was
pioneered and has triumphed thanks to the guidance of the leader and the
self-sacrificing struggle of the revolutionaries of the preceding generations,
and because the dignity of socialism is associated with their honour. Modern
revisionists and socialist renegades have caused socialism to degenerate and
collapse by disgracing the leader and their revolutionary elders and by
obliterating their exploits. The process of the degeneration and collapse of
socialism began with the emergence of modern revisionism, which vilified the
leader and revolutionary pioneers and distorted and debased the revolutionary
ideas of the working class. Because of modern revisionists, socialism began to
go off the track and crumble from within. Its collapse was due to the policy of
¡°reform¡± and ¡°restructuring¡±, pursued by socialist renegades who denied and
obliterated every historical achievement of socialism. Opportunists and
socialist renegades slandered the leaders of the working class and debased the
sacred revolutionary struggle and great revolutionary achievements of their
revolutionary predecessors. They destroyed socialism and revived capitalism.
This is a most despicable counterrevolutionary crime that betrayed the
revolution under the pressure of imperialism, an immoral perfidy that discarded
loyalty to the revolution and trampled underfoot elementary human morals.
Traitors to the revolution left no stone unturned in slandering and defaming
their revolutionary predecessors. Thus they created ideological vacillation and
confusion among the people and gave the imperialists and reactionaries the
chance to slander the communists and socialism even more
viciously.
The
traitors gained the leading positions of the party and state through an intrigue
and tarnished the honour of their revolutionary forerunners in an attempt to
enhance their popularity and win support from the people. However, the top
hierarchy of the party and state does not necessarily mean the leader, or enjoy
the support and respect of the people. People¡¯s confidence cannot be earned by
means of power or fraud. If one wants to become a leader and enjoy people's
confidence and support, one must have the personality and qualifications that
befit a leader and fulfil the responsibility and role as such. A leader must,
above all, be the people¡¯s servant who loves and devotes himself to them. Love
for the people and respect for revolutionary predecessors are inseparable. A
person who loves the people and is loyal to them is bound to highly respect his
revolutionary forerunners who struggled self-sacrificingly for the people.
However, one who despises the people and lords it over them does not hesitate to
disgrace his revolutionary elders in the most despicable way. The renegades from
socialism attempted to vilify the revolutionary leaders and predecessors in a
crafty way in order to enhance their own prestige. However, they have revealed
their true colours as traitors, as well as their inhuman qualities. Those who
have deceived their people and betrayed the revolution will inevitably be
forsaken by the people.
True
revolutionaries who fight for the people and for the victory of socialism must
not forget their revolutionary forefathers; instead, they must defend and
develop their achievements. This is the way to keep their revolutionary honour
and dignity and lead the revolution to victory.