Korea in 2012

Greeting the new year 2012, the leading newspapers of Korea, including Rodong Sinmun, carried a joint editorial.

It has been an annual event to publish a joint editorial on New Year’s day in Korea, but this year’s drew the special attention of the world, for it was the first issue after the sudden death of its leader Kim Jong Il.

The joint editorial expressed Korea’s will to hold forever Kim Jong Il in high esteem and carry out his lifetime instructions to the letter.

This finds expression in the slogan “Glorify this year 2012 as a year of proud victory, a year when an era of prosperity is unfolding, true to the instructions of the great General Kim Jong Il!” Found in its title and passages are not a few expressions like “true to the behests of General Kim Jong Il,” “as Kim Jong Il said,” and “true to the far-reaching plan of Kim Jong Il.”

The editorial also vividly portrayed the Korean people’s faith to carry forward and accomplish the socialist cause without fail under the leadership of their supreme leader Kim Jong Un.

The Korean people firmly believe that the dear respected Kim Jong Un is precisely the great General Kim Jong Il. It is their steadfast will to adorn the Korean revolution pioneered by President Kim Il Sung and whose victory after victory they won following Kim Jong Il, with eternal victory following the leadership of Kim Jong Un.

The year 2012 marks the centenary of the birth of Kim Il Sung (April 15) and the 70^th birthday of Kim Jong Il (February 16).

The joint editorial stated that this year 2012 is the year when Kim Jong Il’s plan for achieving prosperity will bear a brilliant fruit, and the year of a grand march when a new century of Kim Il Sung’s Korea begins.

This year the Korean people will increase to the maximum the political and ideological might, the might of their unity, which is their first and foremost national power.

Along with this they will vigorously launch an all-out drive to implement the strategy for achieving prosperity set by the Workers’ Party of Korea.

The flames of Hamnam for a fresh, great upsurge in building a thriving nation which were kindled last year by Kim Jong Il during his energetic field guidance in South Hamgyong Province, represent the banner of the general offensive of the Korean people for the great victory in 2012.

The editorial pointed out that the flames of Hamnam for great innovation should flare up more fiercely in the sectors of light industry and agriculture, the leading sectors for the building of a thriving country.

The sector of light industry should direct utmost concern to making the modern production bases, which are associated with leader Kim Jong Il’s great care for the people, pay off and thus produce quality goods in larger amounts. In the agricultural sector it is necessary to achieve cyclic production between farming and stockbreeding, introduce the organic farming method in a proactive manner and take timely measures to satisfy the demand for farming materials and machinery needed to hit the target for agricultural production. This year Korea will ensure that the modern bases for stockbreeding and poultry farming and large-size fruit and fish farms, all having an important share in the improvement of people’s living standards, run at full capacity.

The editorial noted that the sectors of electric-power, coal-mining, metallurgical and chemical industries and rail transport, the vanguard sectors of the national economy, the sectors of basic industries, are charged with making breakthroughs in the grand onward march for the next 100 years.

The industrial revolution in the new century is the grand strategic line of socialist construction advanced by the WPK and the struggle for building the country into a powerful one with the knowledge-based economy of Korean style through the drive to break through the cutting edge.

Korea will give full play to the pioneering spirit and creative attitude displayed in making a rapid progress in producing the latest CNC machine tools, so as to drastically increase the capacity for developing new technologies and products of their own in all sectors and units of the national economy, and push forward in a far-sighted way the work of turning the national economy into a technology-intensive one.

The scientific research sector will make greater efforts to develop the fields of core, basic technologies including information and nano technologies and bioengineering, and technical engineering in major fields, while bringing science and technology close to production.

The editorial commented on the need to glorify Korea as a highly cultured, socialist one that would surpass the standards of the world civilization in all spheres of social life including education, literature and the arts, physical culture, the socialist culture and ethics and way of life.

It also emphasized that the appearance of Pyongyang should be improved to mark the centenary of the birth of President Kim Il Sung. This year, too, Korea will make continuous efforts to consolidating the national defence capabilities in every way under the unfurled banner of Songun. The Korean people who have turned out in the new year’s onward march, united firmly around their supreme leader Kim Jong Un, are full of confidence in sure victory. They will surely achieve brilliant victory in their efforts of this year to open the gates of a thriving nation.