A JOURNEY TO THE COUNTRY OF THE SUN by Shaun Pickford (part 3)

A JOURNEY TO THE COUNTRY OF THE SUN

by Shaun Pickford (part 3)

 

Without any exaggeration I would say that the highpoint of my 2012 trip was being present at the military parade on Kim II Sung square. I have in the past watched DPRK military parades on DVD and on you tube, but nothing could have prepared me for this spectacular event. I was lucky to have a grandstand view of the march past by the Korean Peoples Army and the Worker-Peasant Red Guards, along with the other invited guests.

 

At 10.00am the parade started with the flags of the Immortal President and of the Eternal General Secretary being carried aloft on two limousines. Marching past the tribune in absolute order were columns representing the fighters from the periods of the Anti-Japanese armed struggle and of the Fatherland Liberation War ( the Korean war 1950-53). I was informed that there were columns from the Kim II Sung Military University, the Kim II Sung Political University, the Seoul Ryu Kyong Su 105 Tank Division and other Korean Peoples Army divisions and institutes.

 

Demonstrating that the defence of the Korean revolution is the duty of the working masses, the Worker-Peasant Red Guards and the Young Red Guards went past the podium. The Worker-Peasant Red Guards are a voluntary militia force made up of the working class, the peasantry and the intelligentsia of the DPRK. It was reassuring to see that the working class of Korea was fully armed and ready to uphold the revolutionary gains of Juche-based socialism.

 

The second half of the parade consisted of armoured columns. Kim II Sung Square was shaken by the weight of the tanks and armoured vehicles. Viewing the missiles of various types, particularly the Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles, was an extremely awesome sight indeed. The Korean Revolution which began with two pistols, has due to the Songun Political Leadership, now possesses state of the art weaponry such as nuclear weapons and precision guided missiles. US imperialism's bellicose behaviour will no longer work with the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. The Korean Peoples Army has both the means and the will to deliver devastating blows to the centres of aggression and of oppression on the planet, if the DPRK is attacked by the imperialists.

 

Two novel features of the parade was the cavalry section, with the horse riders dressed in winter combat uniforms. The other aspect to the parade which was special, was the three MIG 29s of the Korean Peoples Air Force, performing daring manoeuvres over the Kim II Sung Square. The KPA aircrafts' feats over the skies of Pyongyang on the morning of April 15th, were on a par with the professionalism with the fame British aerobatic display team "The Red Arrows" and in many ways exceeded their UK counterparts in their ability.

 

Like a bolt from the blue, KIM JONG UN, who was there at the military parade, gave a speech to mark the Day of the Sun. The moment KIM JONG UN spoke to the assembled guests and participants, his voice displayed a great deal of maturity and strength. KIM JONG UN stated in his April 15th speech "The military and technical superiority is no longer a monopoly of the imperialists and gone are the days when the enemies could threaten and blackmail the DPRK with atom bombs". The Supreme Leader of the DPRK stressed "The final victory of the Korean revolution lie in advancing straight along the road of independence, the road of Songun and the path of socialism indicted by KIM IL SUNG and KIM JONG IL". The April 15th speech of KIM JONG UN was the ultimate tribute to the exploits of KIM IL SUNG and of KIM JONG IL.

 

After the parade was over, KIM JONG UN came over to the spectators. There was a flurry of immense excitement, when the Leader came to the balcony of the reviewing platform, and waved in the direction of the foreign guests were standing. I would say that it was very much the pinnacle of my visit to the DPRK was to have seen KIM JONG UN so close up. KIM JONG UN carried himself with so much grace and dignity. I will always remember the sparkling smile of KIM JONG UN, it was like the midday sun.

 

KIM JONG UN comes across as a leader very much in touch with the aspirations of the Korean people. KIM JONG UN is constantly delivering on the spot guidance to various sectors up and down the DPRK. I recall seeing KIM JONG UN four times at different state celebrations. While I was in the DPRK, KIM JONG UN was elected the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea at the 4th Conference of the WPK and was made the First Chairman of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK at the April 2012 session of the Supreme Peoples Assembly of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. KIM JONG UN is an dynamic young leader who is defending and advancing the revolutionary legacy of KIM IL SUNG and of KIM JONG IL, and who will bring socialist prosperity to the DPRK.

 

In Britain we have fireworks' displays on November 5th every year to mark Guy Fawkes Night, but on the Taedong River on the evening of the April 15th 2012 I was thrilled to see an extravaganza beyond my imagination. The night sky of Pyongyang was turned into daylight with the massive firework display. Central Pyongyang became the backdrop to a fireworks show which excellently coordinated music with kaleidoscopic colourful images. The firework display on the evening of April 15th entitled "Sun's Korea Will Prosper Forever!" was a festival of sensations, particularly for the eye.

 

Another evening function was the grand soiree of the youth and students on Kim II Sung Square. Pyongyang's main square was transformed into a gigantic ballroom for the night. Thousands of Kim II Sung Socialist Youth League members were gathered for the evening gala and performance in celebration of the centenary of the President. When the musical presentation was over, I was ushered over to take part in the mass dancing of the Korean young people to the tunes of the popular DPRK music groups, Pochonbo and Wangdaesan. I was able to dance the night away with a Korean girl dressed in national costume. Korean dancing appears to be of a synchronized nature, people danced as a collective unit and not as isolated individuals. In the DPRK this method of dancing is known as dance notation. Admittedly I found alot of the dance moves very complex and fasting moving for me to keep up with my dancing partner and with the main body of dancers. I definitely would not qualify for the DPRK version of the TV programme "Strictly Come Dancing". Having said that, I felt that I had a very pleasurable experience dancing outdoors, while the nocturnal sky of Pyongyang was lit up by thousands of fireworks.

 

One tune which I danced to, was the song "Footsteps". "Footsteps" has become the most well liked song recently in the DPRK. It is a song which is intimately associated with the leadership of KIM JONG UN, who is faithfully following the footsteps of the preceding revolutionary generations on the road to triumph. This song ,has without a doubt,a memorable melody and lyrics.

 

I was glad that the Kimilsungia exhibition centre was included on the itinerary. The two storey exhibition hall was ab-lazed with the colour of the Kimilsungia flowers. The Kimilsungia flower was cultivated by an Indonesian botanist and was given to KIM IL SUNG and the Korean people as a token of the highest esteem of the people of Indonesia in 1964. The Kimilsungias were arranged alongside of models and reconstructions of revolutionary sites and socialist construction projects such as Mangyongdae and the DPRK made satellite "Kwangmyongsong". These models were very detailed and aesthetically pleasing. Strolling among the exhibits of the Kimilsungia flower show, I saw hundreds of Korean and foreign visitors, including large groups of the Korean Peoples Army servicemen and servicewomen. The flowers Kimilsungia and Kimjongilia are loved by the Korean people because they symbolized the two great leaders of all ages and nations with their radiant colours.

 

To round off the series of commemorative events, the delegation went to see the gala performance "We will live Forever, Holding the Leader in High Esteem",held at the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium on April 16th. I had the impression that the performance was a joint one, by the re-owned Manusdae Art Troupe and the Korean Peoples Army Merited Chorus. As Well as famous Korean artistes performing, there were guest stars from the Song and Dance Ensemble of the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army, the Moscow Tchaikovsky State Conservatory and the Cuban female musicians' group Anakona. Stirring renditions of the Korean songs "Nostalgia", "General KIM IL SUNG Is Our Sun" and "Long Live The Juche Idea" were given during the performance, among many other beautiful numbers. The contribution of all these famous musical art troupes helped to create an atmosphere within the confines of the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium similar to a melodic and visual paradise. This gala performance chronicled brilliantly the biographies and revolutionary activities of KIM IL SUNG and of KIM JONG IL, using synchronization between images and music. Juche Art can be considered the summit of human creative abilities.

 

Our delegation was proud to had the Chairman of the Group of the Juche Idea of Britain awarded the DPRK Order of Friendship by Kim Yong Nam, the President of the Presidium of the Supreme Peoples Assembly of the DPRK at the Mansudae Assembly Hall. I saw the conferring of this order to the Study Group's Chairman as a recognition of the accomplishments of the group's membership to advance the Juche Idea in the tough conditions of a imperialist society such as Britain. I shall treasure the moment when I received the portrait badge with the beaming depiction of KIM JONG IL. I shall cherish the portrait badge as one of my precious objects.

 

The April 2012 trip to the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea was made possible due to the endeavours of the Korean Association of Social Scientists and of the DPRK Embassy in London and of course to the Beijing representative of the Korea Publications Export and Import corporation, to which I am indebted. I would also like to express my appreciation to the hard work by Professor Li who acted as our guide. During the World Juche Congress, the young women students of Kim Il Sung University provided an invaluable service as translators and assistants.

 

I will along with my fellow study group and UK KFA members, will work to encourage a better understanding of the DPRK among the British public opinion, overcoming the distortions and prejudice perpetrated by the bourgeois media. Every person who defines themselves as a socialist, an anti-imperialist and a peace campaigner should rally around Juche Korea as a beacon of peace and social justice, and support the Korean people's struggle for independent reunification.

 

In April 2012 I was able to witness the Korean people constructing a society in conformity with their independent desires. The DPRK is a nation which is not enslaved to the multi-national corporations, the IMF and the Word Bank. Everything in the DPRK, social relations and social wealth, is run for and by the Korean people for their own benefit. Peoples Korea is an example of self-reliant development to the rest of the global south and is an model of authentic socialism to the working people of all lands.I would say that the DPRK is the world's foremost anti-imperialist nation.

 

The sad demise of the Great Leader Comrade KIM JONG IL left the Korean people in deep anguish and the world progressives in shock. Under the leadership of KIM JONG UN, the people of Songun Korea have turned sorrow and pain into great resolve and determination. The socialist cause of Juche will not be diluted with calls for "opening", "reforms" and "market economics". The April 2012 celebrations for the centenary of President KIM IL SUNG has gone down in human history as a landmark event. With the guidance of the Dear Respected Comrade KIM JONG UN, I am convinced that the heroic and revolutionary Korean people will achieve absolute victory in the building of socialism and communism, and that Korea will be reunified independently.

 

 

 

 

 

 (Shaun Pickford is the Secretary General of the Group For The Study of the Juche Idea of Britain, he is currently head of the Stoke On Trent Branch of the Study Group & of the Staffordshire Branch of UKKFA; Shaun Pickford has visited the DPRK fives times)