Self-sufficiency in the economy is to build an independent national economy. In other words, it means building an economy which stands on its feet, an economy which serves one’s own people and develops by the efforts of one’s own people without dependence on others.
Leader Kim Jong Il said.
“Building an independent national economy means building an economy which is free from dependence on others and which stands on its own feet, an economy which serves one’s own people and develops on the strength of the resources of one’s own country and by the efforts of one’s own people.”
As a man cannot say a word if he is owe to others, so a country cannot exercise independence if it is subordinated economically. Especially if the countries which had been economically and technically lagged behind due to domination and plunder by the imperialists in the past are to free from domination and subjugation of the imperialists, they should build a self-sufficient economy.
For instance, the big power chauvinists tried to make Korea join the “CMEA”.
The “CMEA” was the economic cooperative organization formed by the East European countries in January 1949 to rehabilitate the destroyed economy after the World War 2 and to counter the economic blockade by the US imperialists.
But the modern revisionists claimed “international division of labour” in order to make the organization a tool to economically dominate and politically subjugate other countries.
For example, the country that is good in vegetable growing should export vegetables and import necessary machines.
The modern revisionists who were greedy for inexhaustible iron ores in Korea, tried to make it join the “CMEA” to buy iron ores at low price and sell machines at high price.
But President Kim Il Sung maintained the line of building independent national economy of the party, saying that if Korea participate in the international division of labour under the condition that it has no machine industry, it should supply raw materials to the members of the “CMEA” and that if so, Korea would have empty tunnels and would beg to other countries.
Korea rejected the pressure of the big power chauvinists and maintained the line of developing light industry and agriculture simultaneously while giving priority to the heavy industry and thus built multi-sidedly and comprehensively developed powerful independent national economy.
Historical experience shows self-sufficiency in the economy only can defend independence and ac
If we are to build the independent national economy on the principle of the economic self-reliance, we should maintain the principle of self-reliance, the revolutionary spirit and the principle of struggle to make revolution to the end by ourselves and build and develop the economy on a multi-sided and comprehensive manner. For the economic self-sufficiency, it is also necessary to equip the economy with modern technique, train large number of national technical personnel and build our own fuel and raw material bases.
