CPGB-ML hosts welcome for Korean Party delegation
A four member delegation of the Workers’
Party of Korea (WPK) visited Britain from late January to early February.
Their main mission was to discuss
prospects for the improvement of bilateral relations, including in such spheres
as trade and academic exchange, and especially to look at developments in
renewable energy, including wind and tidal power. Besides London, the
delegation visited Bristol and Cambridge.
The delegation was headed by Comrade Pak
Kyong Son, Vice Director of the International Department of the WPK Central
Committee, and the other members were Comrades Ri Ung Gil, Kim Hyong Chol and
Tong Kyong Chol.
On the evening of Sunday 1 February, the
Central Committee of the Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist)
(CPGB-ML) hosted a reception and dinner to welcome our Korean comrades.
Despite appalling weather, this being the
evening when London came to a standstill due to heavy snowfall and the city’s
lack of adequate preparation and investment in infrastructure and emergency
services, a large number of party members turned out to give a resounding
welcome to our comrades-in-arms, who are standing on the frontline of the
struggle against US imperialism and its allies.
The formal part of the evening began with
a performance of beautiful English classical and folk songs, by Edward Elgar
and other composers, with piano accompaniment, presented by two brilliant young
women students from a leading London conservatory.
Welcoming the delegation, on behalf of the Central
Committee, and especially of Party Chairman Comrade Harpal Brar, who was
overseas, Comrade Ella Rule, Vice Chairman and International Secretary, said: “We
are so happy to welcome you here, and so grateful that you were able to find
time from your busy schedule to come and spend an evening with us. Many of us
here tonight have enjoyed your hospitality in Korea and we welcome the chance
to be able to reciprocate, even if our efforts are very modest compared to
yours.”
She continued: “You have been in England now for a week, and you cannot have failed to notice signs of material wealth to
the point of extravagance, with the shops full of people spending like there’s
no tomorrow, notwithstanding the economic woes in which our country is
embroiled. The IMF has indicated that Britain will suffer even more than other
countries as a result of this crisis, as it had sunk so much of its economy
into the very financial services which are now in terminal decline. When the
crisis is finally over, it is probable that Britain’s standing as an imperial
power will be severely weakened.
“In the meantime,
companies which were household names are disappearing into bankruptcy, with
their workers thrown out on the streets. Last month alone, 78,000 jobs were
lost in our country – and most of these people will not find it at all easy to
find other work. For the moment at least they are fortunate enough to receive
from the state sufficient money to keep starvation at bay – although it is only
a matter of time before our ruling class decides it cannot afford such luxuries
as social security benefits after paying hundreds of billions of pounds to
rescue our ailing banks – and failing.”
Contrasting this with
the situation in Korea, Comrade Rule said: “In your country, people in
general have much less in material wealth than people do here. However, they
more than make up for this in spiritual wealth and wellbeing. In this country,
more than a quarter of all children are brought up in poverty, which means their
families cannot afford the material possessions that others have, even if they
are not starving. However, all these children are subjected to night and day
propaganda, through the television and advertising in general, which preaches
that a person’s worth is to be measured by material possessions – to which they
have no access. A recent report into the life of British children has noted
that they no longer play out of doors, but stay at home in front of the
television, being bombarded by advertising designed to make them desperately
want the generally useless products that the advertisers are promoting, needing
to possess these items in order to boost their self esteem. Deprived of the
means to acquire these items, an alarmingly high number of young children turn
to prostitution and drug dealing in order to acquire the money to be able to
buy this self esteem for themselves.
“In your country, your young people do
not have this problem… The state provides them with every facility not only to
go out and play, but also to develop their artistic, sporting, musical and
other talents. It also provides excellent education that puts Korean children
some two years on average ahead of English children at school. Korean children
do not need material possessions to boost their self esteem – instead they have
their growing intellectual, artistic and sporting abilities to convince them
that they are valuable people for their community.”
Comrade
Rule concluded by thanking “your country, its Workers’ Party and its undisputed
leader, Comrade Kim Jong Il, for sticking firmly to principles of humanity and
socialism”, proposing a toast to the Korean people, the WPK and Comrade Kim
Jong Il and congratulating him on his impending 67th birthday.
In his remarks, Comrade Pak Kyong Son, expressed
the delight of himself and his delegation members at the welcome extended to
them and extended their own fraternal greetings to Comrade Harpal Brar and all
members of the CPGB-ML. He continued: “We are deeply encouraged by your
support and solidarity shown to our people in our struggle for defending the
sovereignty of our country and defending socialism, and also our efforts to
achieve national reunification.”
Comrade Pak continued: “Our people are
waging a struggle to defend socialism in very difficult conditions because of
the anti-DPRK campaigns on the part of the United States and its imperialist
allies. The socialist cause is going alright in our country thanks to the
struggle on the part of the entire membership of the Workers’ Party of Korea and your solidarity.
“I know Comrade Ella Rule visited the
DPRK on the occasion of the 60th birth anniversary of Comrade Kim Jong Il and
she is very familiar with the circumstances of our country. Last year when we
celebrated the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea the entire membership of the WPK and the people of Korea
demonstrated their real confidence to add lustre to the achievements made by
Comrade Kim Il Sung, the founding father of socialist Korea, and their will and
desire to follow the songun [army first – ed.] revolutionary
leadership of Comrade Kim Jong Il to complete our cause of socialism.
“This year the entire population,
including the working people of our country, set out on a struggle for a great
revolutionary upsurge. We are going to make a fundamental turning point in our
struggle to build a great, powerful socialist nation based on the achievements
we made in all areas including politics and ideology. The party members are
full of enthusiasm to achieve these successes. We are trying to demonstrate the
superiority of a socialist economy by achieving progress in our struggle to
improve the national economy and improve the living standards of the popular
masses.
“Socialism is a science and is the ideal of
human beings, so I think it will surely win. We will be with you in our
struggle for socialism… I am sure you will have a big success in your struggle
to defend and promote socialism in the difficult and complicated situation in Britain. I wish you all the best.”
Concluding, Comrade Pak brought the entire hall to
its feet with an enthusiastic standing ovation in response to his militant
slogan:
“Long live the indomitable unity and
friendship between the Workers’ Party of Korea and the Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist Leninist)!”
Following an excellent dinner, a representative of
the CPGB-ML Central Committee entrusted to the head of the delegation a gift
from Comrade Harpal Brar to Comrade Kim Jong Il and a floral tribute for his
67th birthday. Gifts from the party were also presented to all members of the
delegation.
Comrade Pak expressed his thanks and said
he would personally convey the gift and floral tribute to Comrade Kim Jong Il.
He expressed thanks once again to the CPGB-ML and noted, in particular, that he
and his comrades were convinced that the party had a bright future, as it had
many young comrades in its ranks, which was so important for continuing the
revolutionary cause.
The entire evening was a great
success and marked a new milestone in further consolidating the warm, comradely
and militant fraternal relations between the WPK and the CPGB-ML, based on
proletarian internationalism.