The struggle of the Workers’ Party of Korea towards the solution of the women’s issue
A century has
passed since March 8 was set as International Women’s Day in support of
progressive women in their struggle for independent rights and equal
development of women.
The women’s issue is, in essence, an
issue of social emancipation of women, half the world population, to enable
them to enjoy the dignity and rights as independent human beings in all fields
of society including politics, economy and culture on an equal footing with
men. It is an important political issue to constantly enhance the status and
role of women in the struggle to realise the independence
of the popular masses.
Under the wise leadership of
President Kim Il Sung, founding father of socialist Korea,
and the respected comrade Kim Jong Il brilliant successes were achieved in
solving the women’s issue in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
During the arduous anti-Japanese
armed struggle the great leader President Kim Il Sung organised the “Anti-Japanese Women’s Association”, the
first women’s revolutionary organization in our country with a deep insight into women’s position and role in the construction and development of a new society. And this constituted a
brilliant tradition of the Korean women’s movement.
President Kim Il Sung organised the Korean Democratic Women’s Union as the first mass women’s organisation in the DPR of Korea on 18 November, 1945 not
long after the liberation of the country from Japanese colonial rule.
Then he promulgated the Law on Gender
Equality on 30 July, 1946. Thus the Korean women, who had
long been subjected to feudalistic oppression, subhuman discrimination and
contempt without any political rights, could participate in building new Korea as fully-fledged masters of the country on an
equal footing with men.
Since then the long-continued
feudalistic discrimination against women has been legally and completely
eliminated.
Full rights and freedom and
advancement of women in political, economic and social life starting from
participation in the decision-making process, access to jobs, health care, education and training to reducing household and social
burdens are guaranteed through the constitution and other specific laws
concerning labour, public health and the family.
The Korean women who used to be
marginalised, being harassed because
of illiteracy, ignorance and no rights for many centuries,
are now participating in the exercise of state power and decision-making, in
administrative and economic management and in social activities as deputies to
the Supreme People’s Assembly and the local People’s Assemblies at all levels.
The policies and measures of our
party for gender equality and women’s advancement are oriented towards not only
simple gender equality but social practice of respect and preferential
treatment of women that are integrated in the state policies.
Korean women have no problems in
giving birth to and bringing up their children thanks to
preferential laws and policies like the Law on Upbringing
and Education of Children and Paid Leave Before and After Pregnancy (150days)
and they have no difficulties in participating in social life on an equal footing with men.
During the last 10-odd years when the
country was suffering from economic difficulties, owing to
the economic sanctions and moves to isolate and suffocate our country on the
part of outside forces, the state policies and measures on
women’s welfare far from diminishing continuously materialised and were even strengthened.
Today women in our country are
vigorously pushing ahead the other wheel of the vehicle of history as
full-fledged members of society. In this process numerous women heroes, PhD
holders and labour innovators have been produced.
Such efforts by our party constitute
a significant contribution to the international efforts to materialise women’s emancipation and settle women’s issues.
Legalising their
social rights and providing the conditions and environment for their full
participation in social life irrespective of nationality, race, language and
religion is the priority of importance in the issue of women.
However on the
worldwide scale many challenges are still left to be addressed for genuine gender equality.
Women remain the first victims to all
forms of socio-political evils like poverty, unemployment, diseases, economic
disasters, armed conflict and violence. And their
political participation is still found at a low level and their involvement in
economic life and human resource development is no better due to the negative
effect of globalization.
The gap between men’s and women’s
pay, discrimination in education and job opportunities and
other unequal economic access accelerate the poverty of women and seriously
violate human rights of women and their dignity.
With the onset of the recent financial crisis, the ever prevalent poverty and marginalization
of women, trafficking in women and children, group violence against women in
regions of armed conflict, and the decreased investment in
the welfare sector for women and children are all
attributable to the outdated stereotype on the social position and role of
women and failure to present women’s empowerment as urgent.
In order that women enjoy enhanced
political status and genuine political, economic and cultural rights, we
consider that international efforts to eradicate poverty, unemployment,
diseases and illiteracy that threaten the very human existence and hinder
women’s advancement must be exerted before anything else.
We believe in particular that all
countries should pay foremost concern to providing legal conditions for
liberating women from all kinds of social inequality and realising genuine gender equality.
Furthermore, it is also an inevitable
task together with ensuring peaceful development of women to build a new
peaceful world without war, a centuries-old desire of the
world’s women, by establishing a lasting peace on this
planet, against war.
The Workers’ Party of Korea will, in
future too, further strengthen international solidarity in the struggle for world
independence upholding the banner of independence, peace and friendship and
positively contribute to the international effort to solve the women’s issue.
From: International
Department Central Committee, Workers’ Party of Korea, 22 February, Juche 99(2010),
Pyongyang.