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American forces fought with the counter-revolutionary army against the Bolsheviks in the Russian Civil War of 1918-19”. The Group of Eight had clearly forgotten – if, indeed, they ever knew – what Comrade Mao Zedong had said of revolution – that it is not like a dinner party or doing a piece of embroidery – but, rather, an act of violence whereby one class overthrows another. Now that the Soviet Union is firmly in the grip of the counter revolution, there is no suggestion that any mercy will be shown either to the seven survivors of the Group of Eight or to millions of other communists and Soviet patriots. This counter revolution will be bloody indeed. The Yeltsinite hooligans on the streets of Moscow could very easily have been dealt with by the Red Army in the same way that the People's Liberation Army of China took firm measures to crush the counter-revolutionary rebellion in Beijing in June 1989. That they failed to do so is not just because – unlike the veterans of the Long March – these men had no practical experience of revolution – it is also because they were moved to act only to spike the worse excesses of terminal modern revisionism rather than to restore genuine socialism., The statements of the State Emergency Committee spoke only of preserving territorial integrity and restoring stability. They did not speak of Marxism-Leninism, proletarian internationalism, communism or socialism. They did not even mention the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45. Rather, and in stark contrast to Lenin, who described the Tsarist Empire as a “prison house of peoples”, they intoned that “our multinational people have lived for centuries, proud of their motherland”. But, you can’s out-Yeltsin, Yeltsin! X Likewise, the Group of Eight proclaimed the continuation of perestroika and their commitment to observe all the unequal treaties that Gorbachev had entered into with the imperialists. Perestroika has brought misery and fear, hunger and unemployment, racial and ethnic strife to the Soviet working people. It was hardly surprising that they failed to rally to a banner that promised more of the same, only a bit more slowly. Moreover, rather than calling on the advanced workers to join with the Red Army to smash the counter revolutionaries, the Emergency Committee told the working class to keep working and to keep off the streets. The possibility exists, of course, that, despite their protestations, at least sections of the Emergency Committee intended to try and return to a genuine socialist course but that they hoped to buy time to stabilise the situation by reassuring the imperialists as to their intentions. If such was the case, one can only say that it was a stupid and fatal miscalculation. It is indeed excellent that the WCP should aim to raise high the flag of communism in this dark hour. But, if we are to rise above nostalgia and go forward, we need to seriously examine how the communist movement came to its present impasse. We cannot explain how the Soviet Union could collapse like a pack of cards simply by looking at the events of the last year or so – or even at the six years since Gorbachev assumed the Soviet leadership in 1985. The seeds of the present debacle were sown long ago – and particularly in the days of Khrushchev when many genuine Marxist-Leninists were driven out of the party and a number of them shot. At the 20th Congress of the CPSU Khrushchev poured bile on the head of the outstanding Marxist-Leninist Comrade Joseph Stalin who had led the building of socialism in the USSR, smashed Hitler fascism and spearheaded the creation of a world socialist system stretching from Berlin to Pyongyang. Every renegade from Marxism has sought to cover his or her

tracks by attacking and denigrating Comrade Stalin. This is no personal matter, as Khrushchev did not simply attack Stalin's personality or the so-called “cult”. He used this attack to put forward his own programme whose essence was to wipe out the distinction between socialism and imperialism. Herein lie the seeds of the "universal human values" that have done so much to finish off socialism in the Soviet Union and many other countries. Therefore, whatever mistakes may have been committed, I think that it's necessary now to affirm the justness of the anti-revisionist struggle waged by socialist countries, Marxist- Leninist parties and individual communists in many countries, including Britain, particularly from the early 1960s onwards. It follows from this that events in the Soviet Union do not constitute the failure of socialism but rather the final, terminal collapse of modern revisionism. Marxism-Leninism has not failed. Rather, it has been shown that it is suicidal to depart from its revolutionary standpoint and teachings. When the majority of the world goes hungry, we can never say that capitalism is a moral or superior system. It is now more important than ever to defend socialism in those countries where it still exists - in Korea, Cuba, China, Vietnam and Laos – and to defend the other progressive countries like Afghanistan, Angola and Libya. Whether overtly or covertly, by means of aggression, blockade or infiltration, all of them will now be more under threat than ever before. We've seen this very clearly this week when John Major stopped off to celebrate with Gorbachev and Yeltsin before flying on to Beijing to threaten and insult the Chinese people. I would like to congratulate Comrade Li Peng for having put this jumped-up bank clerk in his place, reminding him that the Chinese people endured more than a century of bullying and humiliation from the imperialists who never gave a damn for the human rights of the Chinese people; and that China's commitment to real human rights is demonstrated by the fact that this developing country successfully manages to lead 1.1 billion people, a quarter of the world's population. China is, indeed, a world power but others are more vulnerable. Whatever differences may exist among us, all communists and anti-imperialists in Britain should unite to defend Korea where the socialist cause continues to win one victory after another in the fields of economy, culture, politics and ideology. The progressive and working class fighters in the Asian community in Britain have a real interest in defending the Afghan revolution and the spark of hope it once provided for the countless millions of oppressed in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Likewise, as in its support for the 'Boat for Cuba' campaign, originally launched by the French Communist Party, the progressive Caribbean community has a real interest in defending the island of freedom in the western hemisphere. It may take some time for us to achieve real unity on the lessons of history and on the way forward – but there is plenty of scope for joint action. And, ultimately, our defence of communism must mean uniting together in a vanguard communist party that, as our contribution to the world revolution, takes on and deals with British imperialism in its heartland.

PAPER OF KEITH BENNETT PRESENTED TO THE EUROPEAN REGIONAL SEMINAR ON THE JUCHE IDEA - PARIS APRIL 1987. Esteemed comrades from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Dear Fellow European Students of the Juche idea, Comrades and Friends, It is indeed my great pleasure to participate in this regional seminar convened around the theme, Europe and World Peace illuminated by the Juche idea. We meet at an auspicious time. The people of the DPRK and all the anti-imperialist, peace- and independence- loving peoples of the world are preparing to celebr ate in a grand and militant fashion the happy occasion of the 75th anniversary of the birth of the great leader Comrade Kim Il Sung, who created and developed the immortal Juche idea in the crucible of a bitter revolutionary struggle. In gathering at our seminar at this time, therefore, we are joining our modest efforts together with those of our Korean friends and peoples throughout the world. In 1987 we celebrate both the 75th anniversary of the birthday of the great leader and also the 70th anniversary of the triumph of the Great October Socialist Revolution which translated socialism from an ideal into a reality. The great leader Comrade Kim Il Sung therefore began his revolutionary activity in an era of great change and development when the revolution was developing more briskly than hitherto. The dear leader Comrade Kim Jong Il is the distinguished continuator of, and successor to, the Juche cause.

-2- He has incisively explained this question as follows: "Kimilsungism was founded and has been developed in the course of safeguarding and embodying the ideological and theoretical achievements of Marxism-Leninism. The Juche idea itself is an idea discovered in the process of the revolutionary struggle waged under the banner of Marxism-Leninism; it is an idea which has opposed all trends of idealism and metaphysics and strictly adhered to the materialistic and dialectic stand. The revolutionary theory of Kimilsungism is also a theory which was founded and enriched in the course of protecting the revolutionary quintessence of Marxist-Leninist theory from bourgeois and opportunist theories and creatively applying and developing it in line with the requirements of the revolutionary practice of our times." As Comrade Kim Jong Il has said the creation of the Juche idea is the most brilliant of the revolutionary achievements of Comrade Kim Il Sung. It was developed in a new era when the oppressed and humiliated masses of the people were becoming the masters of their own destinies and a new era of human history was approaching. In this era the revolutionary movement makes progress in a broad and diversified way on a worldwide scale. This entails the working class and people of every country solving all problems in accordance with their actual situation. As dear Comrade Kim Jong Il points out: "When the leader embarked on the road of revolution, a

-3- new development was taking place in the struggle of the working class and the popular masses against exploitation and oppression. On the world arena, the influence of socialism, which had won its first victory, grew strong, and the revolutionary struggle of the working class and the liberation struggle of the peoples in colonies and semi-colonies were intensified sharply." Comrade Kim Il Sung emphasised from the earliest days of his political work and on the basis of summing-up positive and negative experiences that it was the duty of revolutionaries to go among the popular masses to educate, organise and inspire them for the struggle. He also emph⃝asised that the revolutionary forces themselves should be trained from among the masses and that all problems arising in the revolutionary struggle should likewise be tackled by relying on the wisdom and strength of the masses, the masters of the revolution. ● The course of the Korean revolution was most difficult and arduous. More than any other it needed to hew out its own independent path. As Comrade Kim Jong Il explains: "The leader clarified the truth that a revolution should be carried out not by anyone's approval or instruction but by one's own conviction and on one's own responsibility and that all problems arising in the revolution should be solved in an independent and creative way." But the Korean revolution also had many points in common

-4- with other revolutionary struggles , particularly those in other colonial and semi-colonial Countries. des. The theories of the Juche idea are thus universal in their significance. As Comrade Kim Jong Il says: "The Korean revolution has paved an absolutely correct path for national liberation in a colony and opened a short cut to socialism." The Juche idea is thus peculiarly and distinctively Korean. It is also the precious weapon and guiding ideology of all peoples. It encapsulates the teaching of Frederick Engels, the co-founder with Как Karl Marx of scientific socialism, that everything truly national is also international. We live in an epoch of immense changes. As Comrade Kim Jong Il says: "Capitalism and imperialism, which has grown fat on the blood and sweat of the working masses and lorded it over their destinies for centuries, is precipitating irreversibly into bankruptcy and towards its downfall, deep into the grave of history." Such a situation presents every individual with a choice as to which side they will take in the ongoing struggle. This is the general reason why progressive intellectuals are increasingly receptive to new ideologies and ideas and why, therefore, there is a vast and growing movement to study and apply the great Juche idea. The joining to this trend of academic personalities in Europe is to be welcomed. Vast distances seperate Korea and Europe and the

-5- differences in circumstances are, of course, equally vast. Yet when viewed with an open mind it can be seen that the Juche idea provides answers to European problems just as much as it does to the problems of other parts of the world. Its stress on the human factor, on the development of man's mastery of the world and the consumation of his Chajusong touches profoundly on the problems that concern many European peoples in a fashion that traditional hools of thought on the left - increasingly mired in economism and crude Ka and mechanical materialistic perceptions - cannot possibly hope to do. The growing success of the Green Party in the Federal Republic of Germany and the development of similar parties and movements in most of the countries of western Europe illustrates this point and should be taken into account by adherents of the Juche idea. National independence is a fundamental prerequisite andstarting point of the Juche idea. As Comrade Kim Jong Il says: "There are big and small parties, big and small countries, and economically developed and underdeveloped peoples in the world, but all parties, all countries and peoples are equal and independent." The countries and peoples of Europe also wish to win, maintain, defend and extend their national independence, and the peoples of Europe - like all peoples - wish to realise Chajusong. Followers of the Juche idea need to pay particular attention to the mass peace movement. This movement opposes the subordination of Europe to the United States, which

-6- seeks global hegemony and vainly plots to eliminate socialism from the face of the earth. The peace movements are a powerful national and international political force standing in the way of that design. As Comrade Kim Il Sung has explained we must welcome any country taking the road of independence and if such countries as Japan or Britain refuse to follow the war policies of the United States it will become impossible to unleash a new and catastrophic world war. Adherents of the Juche idea in Britain, defence therefore, welcome the non-nuclear/policy of the Labour Party whilst criticising its limitations in wary both ideology and policy and remaining way of the attempts of the more reactionary As quarters of the that party to dilute it any further or to overturn overturn it altogether. But Europe is not just the home of imperialist powers like Britain, France and Federal Germany. There are numerous small and medium sized countries with a number of which - such as Sweden, Switzerland and Austria - uphold neutrality. Others - such as Malta and Cyprus - are active members of the Non- Aligned Movement, which President Kim Il Sung defines as a mighty revolutionary movement of our times. Even some members of the aggressive NATO alliance - notably Greece - are taking more independent positions in international affairs. In all of these countries the state policies bear a often certain - albeit/limited - relationship to the Juche idea and the peoples of those countries are abey the more consistent force impelling their

-7- governments to further progress on the road of independence. However, direct, But/ the most direct/ immediate and relevant applicability of the Juche idea in western Europe lies in those countries and communities whose conditions of life and struggle most closely approximate to those of the oppressed Third World nations of Asia, Africa and Latin America. Amongst this number we must include the black national minority communities of Britain, France and other countries who maintain a thousand and one ties to their homelands. Above all I refer to the question of Ireland. In an important speech delivered in Pyongyang in 1984 the great leader Comrade Kim Il Sung himself pointed out that both the Korean and Irish peoples have a bitter past when they were oppressed and maltreated by colonialists and imperialists and still today they face the bitter national tragedy of partition and division with one Max part of the homeland occupied by an external power. With such a close similarity in the objective conditions it can hardly be surprising that the revolutionary guiding ideologies developed by the two peoples have important points in common. These lie above all in the stress on independence in the realms - inter alia - of politics, ideology and organisation. The revolutionary democratic vanguard party of the Irish people is called Sinn Fein, meaning 'We Ourselves'; that is to say the liberation of the Irish people is the affair and

-8- responsibility of the Irish people themselves. this So it can be seen that the party reflects the ideas of Juche even in its very name. The great Irish revolutionary leader, James Connolly, who was executed by the British imperialists in cold blood in 1916, did more than any one other individual to advance a scientific socialist conceptualisation of the Irish peopls' spirit of freedom which has sustained this spirit that people down through generations and centuries. His work prefigures the Juche idea to a remarkable extent. When James Connolly said that, "the internationalism of the future will be based on the free federation of free peoples", he anticipated the Juche-based Standpoint syandpoint on international relations in a way that has lost none of its freshness and relevance. The Irish people can also deeply, grasp dear Comrade Kim Jong Il's statement that man "regards Chajusong as his life and soul". This grasp was seen most clearly in 1981 when ten brave young Irish patriots laid down their lives on hunger strike to assert their status as political prisoners of war. The most well-known of their number, Bobby Sands, kept a secret diary during the first days of his fast in which he described the struggle waged between his body and his mind. Intrinsically grasping the Juche philosophy he concluded that it was the mind that must in the end prevail. It is no wonder that during the epic hunger strike Cuba's revolutionary leader, Comrade Fidel Castro, was moved to.say: "Let tyrants tremble