An Account of JISGE reportback from the DPRK meeting

The Juche Idea Study Group of England together with the Association for the Study of Songun Politics UK ,sponsored by the UK Korean Friendship held a meeting to report back on the visit to the DPRK in April and to mark the Day of the Sun and anniversary of the Korean Peoples Army, This was held on May 12th at 2pm.
                                 It was held in the Marchmont Centre in central London, It was attended by 17 people including Andy Brooks general secretary of the New Communist Party, Dr Goodacre of the university of London and others. Present were members of the JISGE and ASSPUK along UK KFA members along members of the New Communist Party and the general public, People from all walks of life were represented and all age groups , the youngest attendees being in their 20s and oldest in their 80s

The meeting received a message of apology for non attendance from the secretary of the Juche Idea Study Group which read as follows
Dear Comrades & Friends,

I wish to sincerely apologize for not attending this important report back meeting on the Study Group's recent visit to the DPRK and the Group's participation in the World Juche Congress. My absence is due to circumstances beyond my control, my mother's illness is preventing me for taking part in the meeting today. I would have liked to give a detailed account of the wonderful and interesting time Comrade Dermot and I spent in the Land of Juche in April 2012.

I am more than confident that Comrade Dermot will deliver an in depth report to the meeting, which will arouse still further solidarity with the Heroic and Revolutionary Korean people. Dermot's speech will go to show that far from collapsing, Peoples Korea is advancing to the ultimate victory of socialism and communism under the leadership of the dear respected Comrade KIM JONG UN. I will attempt, overcoming technical and domestic difficulties,will produce my own report. With very best wishes.

The meeting observed a 1 minute silence for comrade Katina Ellis a supporter of the JISGE and UK KFA  who had passed away recently.

The chairman of the group made a report of his visit . He said (excerpts)
"

This was my 7^th visit to the DPRK and I was visiting it after a gap of 4 years. It was also 20 years since my first visit . It was like a dream to be in the DPRK again , at times we just could not believe that we were there, Our trip had so many high points it is difficult to list them all or put them in order of priority.
We boarded our Air Koryo flight to Pyongyang on Monday 9th of April. We arrived in the afternoon. Pyongyang was covered in the beautiful April sunshine . We were met at the Airport by Professor Ri Mu Il , who heads the British studies section of Kim Il Sung university and is an expert on Britain. He was our guide for the visit. Professor Ri was a jolly and humourous man. He told me an import saying which was expect or hope for the best but be prepared for the worst. He proved to be a very capable and efficient guide.

My first impression on visiting the DPRK again after 4 years ago was that the socialist system is solid and the red flag is literally flying high on the streets of Pyongyang. At some street corners we saw many red flags flying , elsewhere the flag of the Workers' Party was prominently displayed. Juche Korea is probably the only country in the world to fly the red flag on the streets ,maybe only 1 or 2 other countries do so. Every morning at 7-30am precisely I could see a group of schoolchildren carrying red flags and banners marching to school signing revolutionary songs such as “Footsteps”. What was also noteworthy about this was that the children were doing this by themselves without a teacher .

Pyongyang does not have capitalist advertising . There are no branches of McDonald’s, KFC or other American fast food chains (which cause litter) . Nor does it have pawnbrokers or Pay-day loan shops . However the services sector in the DPRK is developing rapidly so there are now many stalls and kiosks selling food and drinks on the streets of Pyongyang but these are state and co-operative owned. There is no big difference between the rich and poor in the DPRK. Walking around the streets we did not see any people with sleeping bags sleeping on the street or people begging, a contrast to London where just in one area around Charing Cross you will see many people who spend the night on the street in a sleeping bag. Looking around Pyongyang we could see how blatant the lies about the DPRK .

All the achievements above are the proud fruit of the socialist system which is the durable legacy of the great leader comrade Kim Il Sung and is also a result of the Songun-based revolutionary leadership of the great leader comrade Kim Jong Il which is continued splendidly by the respected general Kim Jong Un . During our stay in the DPRK the respected general comrade Kim Jong Un was elected as First secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea and also First Chairman of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK. This

is a concrete manifestation of the deep support and trust of the people in the respected general Kim Jong Un. It is also important to note that he was democratically elected to the top posts of the party and state thus proving falsiring to say the least. Respected general Kim Jong Un spoke. His voice was strong and authoritative. e the slanders of the imperialists concerning the system in the DPRK.
We attended the World Congress on the Juche Idea held in the People's Palace of Culture, There is an incredible amount of material concerning this so it will probably have to be the subject of a separate report. The decision to hold the congress was taken after a proposal was made by Bangladeshi Juche Idea Study delegations in March 2011. The congress was attended by Juche idea followers from all corners of the globe . In fact due to the various events being held Pyongyang was host to a very large number of people with every hotel room in the City being occupied so. It was a far cry from the propaganda of the Western media that the DPRK is "closed" and "isolated ". The opening ceremony of the Congress was attended by many leading officials of the WPK and DPRK

government as well luminaries of the international Juche scene such as Dr Vishwanath and Ogami Kenichi. There were many good speeches and the congress adopted the Pyongyang declaration of the World Juche Congress, We also heard some very good lectures. We were able to meet and have discussions with Juche Idea followers from Russia, Brazil, Bangladesh, Switzerland, Malta and South Africa just to name a few .
Undoubtedly the highest point was the grand military parade on April 15 the Day of the Sun. This was simply amazing and awe inspIn his speech Kim Jong Un said that the military parade is a great festival of victors which was provided according to the noble intention of leader Kim Jong Il and on his direct initiative to glorify forever the feats"

Many questions were asked by the audience, including the role of the media, cultural exchange between the UK and DPRK, sanctions against the DPRK  and the DPRK satellite launch.

Andy Brooks general secretary of the New Communist Party read out the declaration of the World Congress of the Juche Idea . The declaration was adopted by acclaim.


To mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of the great leader comrade Kim Il Sung  a lecturer of London University spoke

"Kim Il Sung, great leader of Korean and world revolution, followed a path untrodden by any other revolutionary leader in history. Above all, and utterly crucially, he was unique in the history of world revolution in the unequalled continuity and single-mindedness of his leadership over a long period of nearly seven decades. This forged a degree of unity among the revolutionary forces in Korea which still strikes terror in the hearts of the world’s imperialists and all reactionaries. Any attempt to learn the lessons of world revolutionary experience and to confront the tasks that lie ahead can only begin with an appreciation of the revolutionary career and achievements of this great figure who towers over the history of the twentieth century and whose immortal legacy of the Juche idea still lights the path to revolutionary advance in the years to come."

 

The president of the ASSPUK spoke on the anniversary of the KPA he said


  Today the KPA,under the leadership of respected general Kim Jong Un is bravely defending the Juche motherland,the fortress of socialism against the provocations of the US imperialists , south Korean fascist puppets and international reactionaries
The KPA was founded originally as the Anti Japanese Peoples Guerrilla Army,in 1932, by the great leader comrade Kim Il Sung, a gifted military strategist and ever -victorious iron willed brilliant commander.It was developed into the Korean People’s Revolutionary Army. This is the root of the Songun revolution. By using protean tactics and true military genius General Kim Il Sung defeated the million strong army of Japanese imperialism.

The Korean People’s Army, under the wise leadership of the great leader Marshal Kim Il Sung, took over and carried forward the traditions of the anti Japanese armed struggle It is based solidly on revolutionary comradeship. Moreover a tradition of army -people unity was created and today flourishes in Songun Korea

Under the wise leadership of the great leader comrade Kim Il Sung the KPA grew into steel strong ranks each soldier being a match for a hundred enemy soldiers

The KPA inflicted a crushing defeat on the US imperialists in the great Fatherland Liberation War of 1950-1953.The KPA also defeated the US in the ‘Pueblo incident’,'EC121 incident’ and ‘Panmunjom incident’ of 1976.

The KPA became a true Juche orientated revolutionary armed force and is the army of the party,the working class and the leader. New theories of warfare have been created.'Moreover under the leadership of the great leader generalissimo Kim Il Sung the KPA stuck to class and revolutionary principles, the revisionist and opportunist " non class" theories were soundly smashed, The leadership of the party over the armed forces was maintained and enhanced unlike some countries where socialism was frustrated,

The might of the KPA was further strengthened under the leadership of supreme commander Kim Jong Il ,who practised Songun politics giving priority to the KPA regarding it as the central pillar of the revolution. The KPA under the Songun revolutionary leadership of the great leader the KPA grew stronger in terms of ideology and politics but also materially. It is now equipped with the latest weaponry and has its own independent deterrent force. The KPA under the command of the Songun supreme commander Kim Jong Il and respected general Kim Jong Un smashed the provocations of the south Korean puppets in November 2010 turning Yongphyong island into sea of flames.
The 80 years of history of the Korean People's Army have been 80 years of victory and glory , The KPA , the vanguard force of the Songun revolution, has defeated the imperialists many times and under the leadership of supreme commander Kim Jong Un will defeat them again.
Today the destiny of world socialism depends on the rifles of the Korean People's Army headed by respected supreme commander Kim Jong Un. The DPRK is on the frontline of the struggle between socialism and imperialism. It stands guard over the independence of the DPRK and the people-centred socialism , the authentic socialism. We salute the anniversary of the Korean People's Army
LONG LIVE THE KOREAN PEOPLE'S ARMY
LONG LIVE SONGUN !
LONG LIVE RESPECTED GENERAL KIM JONG UN

The meeting heard a tribute to comrade Katina Ellis who hadsuddenly passed away-

"It was all the more terrible to receive this news about Katrina, having seen Katrina make an energetic and spirited contribution to the February 2012 Study Group meeting. Comrade Katrina was a staunch Communist and principled anti-imperialist. She espoused the cause of the Greek Communists and the working class of Greece with great conviction and passion. At every Study Group and KFA UK meeting and particularly KFA pickets, Comrade Katrina showed her unconditioned support for the Korean people's cause of socialism and reunification. On a personal level, Katrina was a friendly, fun-loving and caring person, easy to get on with. Katrina will be really missed by myself and indeed by all of us in the Study Group and the KFA UK.

May the memory of Comrade Katrina live forever in our hearts and minds!!!"

It was resolved for the Group to organise a small seminar on the work of the great leader comrade Kim Il Sung "On Some Questions of the period of transitiion from Capitalism to Socialism and the Dictatorship "  and to organise seminars on a much larger scale on the works of the dear respected general  Kim Jong Un " Let Us Brilliantly Accomplish the revolutionary cause of Juche holding the great comrade Kim Jong Il in High Esteem as the eternal general secretary of our Party " and the  speech made to the grand military parade on April 15.

UK KFA members present resolved to organise the UK KFA AGM for on June 25th and combine it with some activities.

A small exhibition of books was arranged.

Refreshments such as tea,coffee and sandwiches were served
Meeting concluded at 16.50 hrs.