Juche

Lyudmil
Chief,
Bulgarian Group for the Study of
Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism

Before Korea was liberated from colonial subordination of the Japanese imperialists, its economy was a typical colonial economy. Its industry was only to exploit raw materials of Korea and export them to Japan.

Korea’s machine industry, a foundation for the self-supporting industry, was next to nothing. Worse still, it was destroyed by the US imperialists during the Fatherland Liberation War. Hence, the DPRK people had to build industry newly in 1953 when the war ended.

Comrade Kim Il Sung invariably advanced and pursued the line of building a socialist independent national economy based on its own materials, equipment and national cadres, so that the DPRK could hold independence and develop and improve the people’s livelihood safely regardless of external factors and world crisis.

It was a basic line of the economic construction to develop heavy industry primarily and advance light industry and agriculture simultaneously. It was because it was impossible to achieve the independent development of light industry and agriculture without the primary development of heavy industry. Light industry and agriculture must be developed as soon as possible to improve the people’s livelihood.

Under the leadership of Comrade Kim Il Sung, the Three-Year Plan (1954-1956) for the Postwar Rehabilitation and Development of the National Economy was carried out in two years and eight months in the total volume of industrial output. As a result, industrial output not only recovered the pre-war level but surpassed it far.

Through the process of carrying out the Five-Year Plan, the DPRK switched from the stage of rehabilitation to the stage of laying material foundations of socialism. In this period, foundations for socialist industrialization and independent national economy were laid.

The First Seven-Year Plan began in 1961. The plan delayed 3 years owing to the complicated international situation and the confrontation with the US imperialists. It was carried out in 1970. The DPRK faced many difficulties caused by the US imperialists’ threat of aggression in this period but realized the socialist industrialization in a short period of 14 years.

The Six-Year Plan (1971-1976) was carried out ahead of schedule. The Second Seven-Year Plan was successfully carried out from 1978 to 1984. During this period, all sectors of the national economy were equipped with modern facilities.

Its industrial output increased at a high speed every year under direct leadership of Comrade Kim Il Sung.

Metal industry developed rapidly and machine industry achieved big successes in the industrialization.

The let-one-machine-tool-make-another movement was launched on the initiative of Comrade Kim Il Sung, thus in the end of 1959 manufacturing 13 000 machine tools which had been considered to be impossible by many technicians. The DPRK could manufacture everything including the most up-to-date metal processing equipment on the world highest level. The DPRK began to manufacture trucks and tractors from 1958.

In 1986, the DPRK manufactured trucks of 2.5-40-ton class, different kinds of tractors, farm machines, varieties of vehicles, modern electric and diesel locomotives, ships of 20 000-ton class, bulldozers, excavators, steam and hydraulic turbines, generators, different kinds of cranes and other complicated equipment necessary for metal, chemical and cement factories.

Big successes were registered also in chemical industry and building-material production. The DPRK could make rapid development of light industry and agriculture by developing heavy industry. The large-scale modern central enterprises and medium and small-scale ones in local areas which produced daily necessaries were built in numbers in a short span of time. Korea had not produced even a pencil before liberation. But modern factories manufacturing TV sets, watches, washing machines and refrigerators began to run.

Successes were registered in the economy and thus the people’s livelihood improved rapidly. All kinds of tax were abolished from 1974 in the DPRK. Accordingly, the DPRK is the first and one and only country in the world that sets up the state budget with profits of the state and cooperative enterprises. Dwelling houses are built entirely at the state expense and provided free of charge.

Free education and medical services are enforced in the DPRK. For instance, the free medical care system had already been enforced on January 1, 1953, that was before the Fatherland Liberation War ended. The average life span of the people was increased 38. 4 years in 1940 up to 74.3 years or almost twice in 1986.

Such all social benefits continued even in the most difficult period in the end of the 20^th century.

Might of self-supporting industry built in the last decades to safeguard independence of the country and socialism was demonstrated in the end of the 20^th century.

With collapse of socialism in the Soviet Union and the East European countries, the DPRK had to undergo the Arduous March. The DPRK suffered huge economic losses owing to the unprecedented natural disasters from 1995 to 1998 along with the breaking off economic relations with the former socialist countries and the increase of the imperialists’ military threats and economic blockades.

However, the DPRK people successfully overcame the worst period under the leadership of Chairman Kim Jong Il, the successor to President Kim Il Sung. Machine industry manufactured CNC lathes on the world level. In 1998 when the enemies were waiting for the “end” of socialism, the DPRK successfully launched the first artificial satellite loaded on her own carrier rocket. Such historic victory could be gained by the socialist self-supporting industry.

After the demise of the Chairman, building of the socialist self-supporting industry continued in the DPRK under the leadership of young and energetic Comrade Kim Jong Un. The principal target of a new economic development in the DPRK was to build a powerful country. In this period, remarkable successes were registered in the sectors of science, technology, the economy and the people’s livelihood improved.

Modernization was accelerated in almost of all industrial sectors on the basis of new facilities manufactured by the domestic enterprises. It is one of characteristics in the modernization which was made in that period that raw material bases of some major enterprises were transformed into the ones using the domestic raw materials, which was the aftereffect of the economic sanction and suffocations. For instance, iron and steel production technology without using coke has been established in metal industry. Domestic coal is being used as a raw material in producing compound fertilizer. The 2^nd raw materials made from the wastes are used on a large scale.

Many large-, medium- and small-scale hydroelectric power stations and thermal power stations have been newly built.

Success registered in rocket technology and the space development is a scientific and technological achievement that is of weighty significance. Based on the development of heavy industry and machine industry, light industry and agriculture develop and the people’s livelihood improves.

It is certain that, under the leadership of Comrade Kim Jong Un, the DPRK will translate Comrades Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il’s desire into reality and build a powerful and independent socialist country, the society where everything is prosperous and developing by relying on its own strength and resources.