Monday 26 August 2024

Rodong Sinmun 1989 article " Ill-Boding Developments’ in Hungary Viewed" (our thanks to KFA Italy and the Milano Juche Idea Study Centre)


Pyongyang, 28 June 1989 (KCNA) — Rodong Sinmun today comes out with a commentary titled “What Does the Situation in Hungary Show,” the full text of which reads:


Very ill-boding developments are noticed in Hungary these days.


According to a report, a “funeral service” was held in that country some time ago for “reburial” of former Prime Minister Imre Nagy, who was executed as the prime mover in the 1956 counter-revolutionary putsch, and his associates. The “funeral service” was participated in by thousands of Hungarian “exiles” who flew there from the West.


Those who caused the counter-revolutionary putsch in 1956 played the leading part in the “funeral service,” openly making an anti-socialist agitation. They portrayed Imre Nagy as a “state activist” and maliciously slandered socialism. There came from them even an “appeal” for destroying the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party and the socialist system.


They also attacked other socialist countries. The anti-socialist forces of Hungary invited to the “funeral service” the overthrown exploiter classes and fascist elements of Romania who had taken refuge in Hungary and fled to Western countries as “delegates” of the Romanian people and vilified the policy of the Romanian Communist Party including the systematisation and modernisation of the rural communities which are being promoted in Romania to eliminate the distinctions between town and country and bring the living conditions of the peasants closer to cities.


The foreign press reported that the “funeral service” was dominated by an anti-socialist atmosphere.


Judging from all these facts, the “funeral service” turned, in fact, into an anti-communist, anti-socialist arena of those harbouring hostility against socialism, into a funeral ceremony for burying socialism.


This indicates that the anti-socialist elements are raising their heads in Hungary and going over to an offensive against socialism.


As regards the “funeral service” the socialist countries are expressing serious concern, thinking that the anti-socialist elements in Hungary are resorting to counter-revolutionary schemings under the cloak of “socialist renovation” and there might be a counter-revolution, if the forces faithful to socialism were not mobilised.


How could things come to such a pass where counter-revolutionaries openly manoeuvre to oppose the working-class party, overthrow the socialist system and attack socialism as a whole in Hungary?


Hungary gradually deviates from the principle of socialism and does not deal a decisive blow to the counter-revolutionary and anti-socialist elements, talking about the so-called “political pluralism”.


The socialist system is a precious gain of the revolution won by the working class and other strata of the popular masses through a protracted bloody struggle and their most valuable revolutionary wealth which cannot be bartered for anything. Hungary can never be an exception. It is thanks to the socialist system that the Hungarian people have enjoyed a new life free from exploitation and oppression over the past decades.


Now in Hungary, however, this blessed socialist system is not defended and consolidated and developed but the moves of the counter-revolutionaries to destroy and overthrow it are allowed. The black flag symbolic of anti-communism and anti-socialism and the flag held by the counter-revolutionaries in 1956 are seen and anti-socialist slogans and demands heard in lawful demonstrations. Publications frequently carry articles slandering socialism. Voices calling for the removal of all such words as socialism from the Constitution, insulting the people’s power as a “police state” and demanding the dissolution of the workers guards are ringing out. The counter-revolutionaries are even clamouring about the “bankruptcy” of socialism.


As facts show, anti-socialist elements are running amuck to wrest the power of the party and state and overthrow the socialist system.


The counter-revolutionary and anti-socialist moves are not decisively thwarted and shattered in time, but are allowed and, worse still, such shocking act as singing duet with the anti-socialist forces is reported — the counter-revolutionary putsch in 1956 is “reappraised” as a “popular uprising” and the “honor” of the punished counter-revolutionaries is restored and they are allowed to strut about freely.


The abnormal situation finds expression also in the fact that the leadership role of the party is being paralysed.


The final victory of the cause of socialism and communism, the revolutionary cause of the working class, can be won only under the leadership of a working class party. What is most important for this is to firmly build up the working class party, the vanguard and guiding force of the working masses, and strengthen its leadership of the revolution and construction.


In Hungary, however, the unity and cohesion of the party is not achieved with the factional activities allowed and fostered within the party under the cloak of “display of democracy” and “free activities”, and even the danger of organisational split is ever increasing. And the principle of democratic centralism of the party and its leadership role in the revolution and construction are being weakened systematically under the pretext of “separation” and “non-interference”. In Hungary counter-revolutionary political parties are being organised under the name of “the multi-party system” and a way is opened for anti-socialist elements to be active in the power and army and public organisations. It must be noted that in the country voices are being raised against the monolithic leadership of the working class party over the power, the army and social organisations and for the division of power among different political parties and putting of the army outside the party and many “independent” social organisations outside the leadership of the party have made their appearance.


The developments in Hungary compel the Communists to raise the natural question where it is heading, deviating from the socialist principle.


The ill-boding goings-on in Hungary are timed to coincide with the ever more wanton anti-communist, anti-socialist campaign of the imperialists.


The imperialists, in conspiracy with each other, are now craftily manoeuvring to split and disorganise socialism from within. While maliciously slandering the socialist system, they are strengthening the anti-socialist propaganda with a frantic advertisement of bourgeois “freedom” and “democracy”. Contending that communism has reached the “terminal of history,” they are openly drivelling that the “opportunity created by reforms” in socialist countries must not be missed but be made the maximum use of.


Such moves of the imperialists are aimed at degenerating socialism and defeating the socialist countries one by one by instilling the poison of capitalism into them.


Not without reason did the foreign press said some quarters of the West must have wanted to see the “funeral of socialism” in Hungary with a happy feeling through the “funeral service” of Imre Nagy.


History proves that whenever a commotion of counter-revolutionaries occurred in socialist countries, the dark tentacles of imperialism had always been stretched there.


The present situation in Hungary causes serious concern among the communists and, at the same time, urges them to exercise due caution.


It is as clear as noonday what grave consequence is brought when a working class party fails to increase its leading role and shares the power with anti-socialist elements, fails to shatter the moves of the counter-revolutionaries in time and block the ideological and cultural infiltration of the imperialists.


Hungary once experienced bitter pains by failing to deal a decisive blow in time to the anti-socialist moves of the counter-revolutionaries and imperialists. Such a painful history must not be repeated again.

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