The name of President Kim Il Sung, founder of socialist Korea, literally means the sun in Korean. As the sun shines for ever, so does his august name.
The august name of President Kim Il Sung is symbolic of the national liberation struggle and the era of independence.
Early in his teenage years the President embarked on the road of revolutionary struggle to liberate Korea from the military occupation of Japanese imperialists (1905-1945). He authored the Juche idea and the Songun idea to illumine the way ahead of the revolutionaries and people of Korea. By so doing he ushered in a new era of independence when the masses of the people became the masters of their own destiny for the first time in history and elucidated the truth of Songun that the victory of the revolutionary cause and independence, sovereignty and prosperity of a country and nation rest on the arms. The Korean revolutionaries and people called him Kim Il Sung in the sense that he was like the sun which illuminates the road to national resurrection and prosperity.
He liberated Korea after waging 15-year-long anti-Japanese armed struggle and established the people’s country. He defeated the United States that prided itself on being the world’s “strongest” in the Korean war (1950-1953), for the first time in history and safeguarded national sovereignty and dignity with credit. And he led to victory the post-war rehabilitation, socialist revolution and the several stages of socialist construction. Thus, he set a world’s example in the struggle for accomplishing the cause of independence of the masses.
He rendered unstinted assistance to China, Vietnam, Cuba and other countries in their struggle of national liberation and anti-imperialism.
Many African countries could achieve their national liberation and build a new society thanks to Kim Il Sung’s unselfish assistance. Sam Nujoma, first president of Namibia, credited the Korean President Kim Il Sung with the independence of his country.
There have been formed at a national, continental and international level a large number of organizations for the study and dissemination of the Juche idea originated by the President and acknowledged as a guiding ideology of the cause of independence of mankind.
The non-aligned movement could be constantly strengthened and developed into a powerful anti-imperialist, independent force by virtue of his deep concern and energetic activities and add great spurs to the struggles for putting an end to domination and subordination and gaining independence of the country and nation and the masses of the people worldwide.
It has become an irresistible trend of the times and aspiration of the mankind to advance along the road of independence indicated by the Juche idea.
The august name of Kim Il Sung is symbolic of lofty virtue and ennobling sense of obligation.
His Juche idea and Songun idea are likened to the light of the sun that illumines the way to be followed by mankind, while his virtue and moral obligation are to the heat of the sun that gives life to all organisms.
The President was a genuine friend and a great benefactor of the peoples of developing countries. He spared nothing in supporting them undergoing difficulties in the building of a new society. He sent a number of experts and technicians to African and other countries to help them sincerely in their efforts to build party, state and armed forces and to develop industry, agriculture, education, healthcare, sports and other sectors.
Stressing the need to develop agriculture in order to solve the food problem, he ensured that they adopted farming methods suited to their specific conditions and helped their irrigation projects. He made the DPRK host a symposium of the non-aligned and other developing countries on increasing food and agricultural production in Pyongyang and proposed to establish institutes of agricultural science with a view to improving agriculture in African countries. Kim Il Sung Research Institute of Agricultural Science was established in Guinea of western Africa and Chollima Agricultural Institute in Tanzania of eastern Africa by help of the Korean agro-technicians, which made a contribution to the agricultural development in Africa.
President Kim Il Sung treated those fighting against imperialism and for independence as his genuine comrades and friends and set a fine example of noble sense of moral obligation of keeping faith with them to the last. There are many anecdotes about his obligation to the friends, including the Great King Norodom Sihanouk of Cambodia and the former Chilean President Salvador Allende.
All the people who met him even once could not but feel great admiration and reverence for his lofty virtues and ennobling personality, even if they were from the countries hostile to Korea. Among such people were Jimmy Carter, former US president, and Shin Kanemaru, former deputy prime minister of Japan.
Kim Il Sung’s name is shining as the banner of eternal victory.
Entering the new century, the aspirations of the world people to live and develop independently are getting ever stronger.
As the time passes, it proves clearer the truthfulness and invincibility of the Juche idea. Seminars on the Juche idea and the activities for its dissemination are proceeding on a worldwide scale. The world conference on the Juche idea is to be held this April in Pyongyang.
The International Kim Il Sung Prize Council was organized in April 1993 and the International Kim Il Sung Foundation established in 2007.
The present situation, when high-handedness, despotic and aggressive moves of the imperialists get ever more unscrupulous after the end of the Cold War, demands that the countries actively advocate the Songun idea and Songun politics rooted in the Juche idea.
Progressive peoples of the world regard Songun politics as an invincible banner that makes it possible to safeguard national sovereignty under any challenge and adversity and accomplish the cause of anti-imperialism and independence.
Nearly 500 streets, institutions and organizations in over 100 countries are named after the
august name of Kim Il Sung.
