Pioneer of National Liberation Struggle
The history of mankind can also be called the history of the masses of the people searching and groping for the genuine path to their freedom and emancipation.
In the early 20th century, the oppressed peoples in the colonial countries in Asia and other continents waged vigorous struggles to put an end to the colonial rule by the imperialists and win national independence.
As they dogmatically approached the preceding theory that the cause of national liberation in the colonial countries depends on the victory of the revolution in the suzerain countries, some countries tried to win independence by relying on the revolution in suzerain countries or big powers. Some others resorted to reckless struggles, believing that if they dealt a blow to the colonial rule by means of demonstration, uprising and riot, they could achieve their national independence.
However, their struggles experienced only failures and frustrations.
After embarking on the road of revolutionary struggle for the country and people in his teens, Kim Il Sung strived hard to find a new path for national liberation struggle, in the course of which he discovered the truth that a country should carry out its revolutionary struggle independently in keeping with its specific conditions, not relying on others, and the masters and makers of the revolution are the masses of its people. Based on it, he created the Juche idea that the masses of the people are the masters and motive force of the revolution and construction. Since then the national liberation struggle of the Korean people entered a new stage.
Actually, the Korean revolution was an epitome of the cause of human liberation as it embraced all the tasks for the cause of national liberation struggle in colonial countries.
Having put forward the idea that national liberation could be achieved only on the strength of the resistance based on all-people unity, he put forward the slogan “Let us carry out the Korean revolution by our own efforts!” and led the Korean people to solve, by their own efforts, all the problems of national liberation struggle, to start with providing the conditions needed for the armed struggle.
Under his leadership, the Korean People’s Revolutionary Army waged an anti-Japanese armed struggle for 15 years without any home front or backing of a regular army, and finally achieved the historic cause of national liberation.
The flames of national liberation struggle flared up more fiercely across the world, with the result that many colonial countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America achieved national independence in the 1960s and 1970s.
Unable to find a way out for his country’s national liberation struggle facing difficulties, Samora Machel, chairman of the Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo) and commander-in-chief of the Mozambican People’s Liberation Army, visited the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in September 1971 to meet President Kim Il Sung, who had defeated two imperialist powers in one generation.
When he met Machel, Kim Il Sung told him his opinions on the ways and means for winning victory in national liberation struggle, saying that they should take the initiative at all times even though the enemy went on the rampage and telling him the experiences had gained during the days of the anti-Japanese armed struggle.
Machel, after returning home, built up the internal forces of the Frelimo, set up secret guerrilla bases in the forests and delivered blows at the enemy by relying on them, thus putting an end to the colonial rule of hundreds of years and achieving national independence.
Declaring the complete independence of his country, he said at a conference: Thanks to the help President Kim Il Sung gave us, we were able to cut off the chains of colonial slavery which had shackled us as well as our ancestors and greet our liberation; let us extend thanks to him also on our ancestors’ behalf.
There are other stories.
Kim Il Sung performed great exploits also for the national liberation struggle in Zimbabwe, Uganda, Namibia and Angola.
The chairman of the Nepalese Committee for Afro-Asian Solidarity, saying why people should attach particular importance to Korea’s liberation and approach it in relation to the world although many countries had freed themselves from colonial rule since the end of the Second World War, stressed:
It is because Korea’s liberation has exerted a decisive influence not only on the independent development of the Korean nation but also on the worldwide change. In the centre of this historical change was always President Kim Il Sung. The 20th century was a course in which the world had been changed by dint of his ideology.
The exploits of President Kim Il Sung, who made a great contribution to accomplishing the cause of independence for mankind by opening a new era in national liberation struggle in colonial countries, will shine for ever.