Workers' Party of Korea

Workers' Party of Korea 조선로동당
Abbreviation	WPK
General Secretary	Kim Jong Un
Presidium	Kim Jong Un Kim Tok-hun Choe Ryong-hae Ri Pyong-chol Jo Yong-won
Founded	24 June 1949; 74 years ago (1949-06-24)
Merger of	Workers' Party of North Korea Workers' Party of South Korea
Headquarters	Government Complex No. 1, Chung-guyok, Pyongyang
Newspaper	Rodong Sinmun
Youth wing	Socialist Patriotic Youth League
Children's wing	Korean Children's Union
Armed wing	Korean People's Army
Paramilitary wing	Worker-Peasant Red Guards
South Korean front	Anti-Imperialist National Democratic Front
Membership (2021 est.)	~6,500,000
Ideology	Communism[A] Kimilsungism–Kimjongilism Juche Songun
Political position	Far-left[B]
International affiliation	IMCWP
Colors	Red
Anthem	"Long Live the Workers' Party of Korea"
Status	Ruling party in North Korea; outlawed in South Korea under the National Security Act
Supreme People's Assembly	607 / 687
Party flag
Politics of North Korea Political parties Elections ^ A: B. R. Myers, Michael J. Seth, and Dae-Sook Suh argue that the ideology of Workers' Party of Korea has little in common with communism, despite the party's official stance.[1][2][3] ^ B: B. R. Myers describes the Workers' Party of Korea as far-right due to its emphasis on Korean ethnic nationalism.[1]

The Workers' Party of Korea (WPK)

The WPK is organized according to the Monolithic Ideological System, conceived by Kim Yong-ju and Kim Jong Il. The highest body of the WPK is formally the party congress; however, before Kim Jong Un's tenure as party leader, a congress rarely occurred. Between 1980 and 2016, there were no congresses held. Although the WPK is organizationally similar to other communist parties, in practice it is far less institutionalized and informal politics plays a larger role than usual. Institutions such as the Central Committee, the Secretariat, the Central Military Commission (CMC), the Politburo and the Politburo's Presidium have much less power than what is formally bestowed on them by the party rules. Kim Jong Un is the current party leader, serving as General Secretary of the WPK.

History

Founding and early years (1945–1953)

On 13 October 1945, the

Party control increased throughout the country after the congress.^[18] From 27 to 30 March 1948, the WPNK convened its 2nd Congress.^[19] While Kim Tu-bong was still the party's formal head, Kim Il Sung presented the main report to the congress.^[20] In it he claimed that North Korea was "a base of democracy", in contrast to South Korea, which he believed to be dictatorial.^[20] On 28 April 1948 a special session of the Supreme People's Assembly approved the constitution proposed and written by WPNK cadres, which led to the official establishment of an independent North Korea.^[21] It did not call for the establishment of an independent North Korea, but for a unified Korea under a communist government; the capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) would be Seoul, not Pyongyang.^[22] Kim Il Sung was the appointed head of government of the new state, with Kim Tu-bong heading the legislative branch.^[23] A year later on 24 June 1949, the Workers' Party of Korea was created with the merger of the WPNK and the Workers' Party of South Korea.^[24]

Kim Il Sung was not the most ardent supporter of a military reunification of Korea; that role was played by the South Korean communists, headed by Pak Hon-yong.^[25] After several meetings between Kim Il Sung and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, North Korea invaded South Korea on 25 June 1950, thus beginning the Korean War.^[26] With American intervention in the war the DPRK nearly collapsed, but it was saved by Chinese intervention in the conflict.^[26] The war had the effect of weakening Soviet influence over Kim Il Sung and the WPK.^[27] Around this time, the main fault lines in early WPK politics were created. Four factions formed: the domestic faction (WPK cadres who had remained in Korea during Japanese rule), the Soviet faction (Koreans from the Soviet Union), the Yan'an faction (Koreans from China) and the guerrilla faction (Kim Il Sung's personal faction).^[27] However, Kim Il Sung would be unable to further strengthen his position until the end of the war.^[27]

Kim Il Sung's consolidation of power (1953–1980)

Relations worsened between the WPK and the

Beginning in the 1960s, Kim Il Sung's cult of personality reached new heights.[30] It had been no greater than Stalin's or Mao's until 1972, when his birthday on 15 April became the country's main public holiday and statues of him began to be built nationwide.^[30] Kim became known as "Great Leader", the "Sun of the Nation", "The Iron All-Victorious General" and "Marshal of the All-Mighty Republic" in WPK and state publications; official propaganda stated that "burning loyalty to the leader" was one of the main characteristics of any Korean.^[30]

Kim Il Sung and his guerilla faction had purged the WPK of its opposing factions during the 1950s and the 1960s, to the dismay of both the CCP and the CPSU.

It was first generally believed by foreign observers that Kim Il Sung was planning for his brother, Kim Yong-ju, to succeed him.^[35] Kim Yong-ju's authority gradually increased, until he became co-chairman of the North-South Coordination Committee.^[35] From late 1972 to the 6th WPK Congress, Kim Yong-ju became an increasingly remote figure in the regime. At the 6th Congress, he lost his Politburo and Central Committee seats,^[35] and rumours that Kim Il Sung had begun grooming Kim Jong Il in 1966 were confirmed.^[35] From 1974 to the 6th Congress, Kim Jong Il (called the "Party centre" by North Korean media) was the second most powerful man in North Korea.^[35] His selection was criticized, with his father accused of creating a dynasty or turning North Korea into a feudal state.^[36]

Kim Jong Il's rule (1980–2011)

With Kim Jong Il's official appointment as

With the death of

On 26 June 2010, the Politburo announced that it was summoning delegates for the 3rd Conference,[51] with its official explanation of the need to "reflect the demands of the revolutionary development of the Party, which is facing critical changes in bringing about the strong and prosperous state and Juche development."^[51] The conference met on 28 September, revising the party rules and electing (and dismissing) members of the Central Committee, the Secretariat, the Politburo, the Presidium and other bodies.^[51] Kim Jong Un was confirmed as heir apparent;^[52] Vice Marshal Ri Yong-ho and General Kim Kyong-hui (Kim Jong Il's sister) were appointed to leading positions in the Korean People's Army and the WPK to help him consolidate power.^[53] The following year, on 17 December 2011, Kim Jong Il died.^[54]

Kim Jong Un's rule (2011–present)

After Kim Jong Il's death, the North Korean elite consolidated Kim Jong Un's position; he was declared in charge of the country when the official report of his father's death was published on 19 December.

The WPK maintains a leftist image,

Relationship to Marxism–Leninism

Although the term "Juche" was first used in Kim Il Sung's speech (given in 1955), "On Eliminating Dogmatism and Formalism and Establishing Juche in Ideological Work", Juche as a coherent ideology did not develop until the 1960s.^[74] Similar to Stalinism, it led to the development of an unofficial (later formalized) ideological system defending the central party leadership.^[75] Until about 1972, Juche was called a "creative application" of Marxism–Leninism and "the Marxism–Leninism of today", and Kim Il Sung was hailed as "the greatest Marxist–Leninist of our time".^[75] However, by 1976 Juche had become a separate ideology; Kim Jong Il called it "a unique ideology, the contents and structures which cannot simply be described as Marxist–Leninist."^[75]

At the 5th Congress, Juche was elevated to the same level as Marxism–Leninism.^[76] It gained in prominence during the 1970s, and at the 6th Congress in 1980 it was recognized as the WPK's only ideology.^[76] During the following decade, Juche transformed from practical to pure ideology.^[76] On the Juche Idea, the primary text on Juche, was published in Kim Jong Il's name in 1982.^[77] Juche is, according to this study, inexorably linked with Kim Il Sung and "represents the guiding idea of the Korean Revolution ... we are confronted with the honourable task of modelling the whole society on the Juche idea".^[77] Kim Jong Il says in the work that Juche is not simply a creative application of Marxism–Leninism, but "a new era in the development of human history".^[77] The WPK's break with basic Marxist–Leninist premises is spelt out clearly in the article, "Let Us March Under the Banner of Marxism–Leninism and the Juche Idea".^[78]

Despite Juche's conception as a creative application of

Juche's primary objective for North Korea is political, economic and military independence.^[85] Kim Il Sung, in his "Let Us Defend the Revolutionary Spirit of Independence, Self-reliance, and Self-defense More Thoroughly in All Fields of State Activities" speech to the Supreme People's Assembly in 1967, summarized Juche:^[85]

The government of the republic will implement with all consistency the line of independence, self-sustenance, and self-defence to consolidate the political independence of the country (chaju), build up more solidly the foundations of an independent national economy capable of insuring the complete unification, independence, and prosperity of our nation (charip) and increasing the country's defence capabilities, so as to safeguard the security of the fatherland reliably by our own force (chawi), by splendidly embodying our Party's idea of Juche in all fields."^[86]

The principle of political independence known as chaju is one of Juche's central tenets.^[87] Juche stresses equality and mutual respect among nations, asserting that every state has the right to self-determination.^[87] In practice, the beliefs in self-determination and equal sovereignty have turned North Korea into a perceived "hermit kingdom".^[87] As interpreted by the WPK, yielding to foreign pressure or intervention would violate chaju and threaten the country's ability to defend its sovereignty.^[87] This may explain why Kim Jong Il believed that the Korean revolution would fail if North Korea became dependent on a foreign entity.^[87] In relations with fellow socialist countries China and the Soviet Union Kim Il Sung urged cooperation, mutual support and dependence, acknowledging that it was important for North Korea to learn from other countries.^[87] Despite this, he abhorred the idea that North Korea could (or should) depend on the two nations and did not want to dogmatically follow their example.^[87] Kim Il Sung said that the WPK needed to "resolutely repudiate the tendency to swallow things of others undigested or imitate them mechanically", attributing the success of North Korea on the WPK's independence in implementing policies.^[87] To ensure North Korean independence, official pronouncements stressed the need for the people to unite under the WPK and the Great Leader.^[87]

Economic independence (charip) is seen as the material basis of chaju.^[87] One of Kim Il Sung's greatest fears involved North Korean dependence on foreign aid; he believed it would threaten the country's ability to develop socialism, which only a state with a strong, independent economy could do.^[87] Charip emphasizes an independent national economy based on heavy industry; this sector, in theory, would then drive the rest of the economy.^[87] Kim Jong Il said:^[88]

Building an independent national economy means building an economy which is free from dependence on others and which stands on its own feet, an economy which serves one's own people and develops on the strength of the resources of one's own country and by the efforts of one's people.^[88]

Kim Il Sung considered military independence (chawi) crucial.^[88] Acknowledging that North Korea might need military support in a war against imperialist enemies, he emphasized a domestic response and summed up the party's (and state's) attitude towards military confrontation: "We do not want war, nor are we afraid of it, nor do we beg peace from the imperialists."^[88]

According to Juche, because of his

The revival of the term "state" in the Soviet Union under Stalin led to the revival of "nation" in North Korea under Kim Il Sung.[92] Despite official assertions that the Soviet Union was based on "class" rather than "state", the latter was revived during the 1930s.^[92] In 1955 Kim Il Sung expressed a similar view in his speech, "On Eliminating Dogmatism and Formalism and Establishing Juche in Ideological Work":^[92]

What we are doing now is not a revolution in some foreign country but our Korean revolution. Therefore, every ideological action must benefit the Korean revolution. To fulfil the Korean revolution, one should be perfectly cognizant of the history of our national struggle, of Korea's geography, and our customs.^[92]

From then on, he and the WPK stressed the roles of "revolutionary tradition" and Korea's cultural tradition in its revolution.

Although WPK theoreticians were initially hostile towards the term's "nation" and "nationalism" because of the influence of the Stalinist definition of "state", by the 1970s their definition was changed from "a stable, historically formed community of people based on common language, territory, economic life, and culture" to include "shared bloodline".^[93] During the 1980s a common economic life was removed from the definition, with shared bloodline receiving increased emphasis.^[94] With a democratic transition in South Korea and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the WPK revised the meaning of nationalism.^[94] Previously defined in Stalinist terms as a bourgeois weapon to exploit the workers, nationalism changed from a reactionary to a progressive idea.^[94] Kim Il Sung differentiated "nationalism" from what he called "genuine nationalism"; while genuine nationalism was a progressive idea, nationalism remained reactionary:^[94]

True nationalism (genuine nationalism) is similar to patriotism. Only a genuine patriot can become a devoted and true internationalist. In this sense, when I say communist, at the same time, I mean nationalist and internationalist.^[94]

Allegations of xenophobia and racism

During the 1960s the WPK began forcing ethnic Koreans to divorce their European spouses (who were primarily from the

Governance

Great Leader

North Korea considers

communist society.^[99] From this point on, humanity can begin to "more and more consciously, make his own history" as human society ceases to be driven by social forces such as class struggle, but instead becomes "the result of his own free actions."^[100]

Juche is an anthropocentric ideology in which "man is the master of everything and decides everything".

Great Leader.^[101] Marxism–Leninism argues that the people will lead, on the basis of their relationship to production. In North Korea a singular Great Leader is considered essential, and this helped Kim Il Sung establish a one-person autocracy.^[105]

This theory makes the Great Leader an absolute, supreme leader.^[106] The working class thinks not for itself, but through the Great Leader;^[106] he is the mastermind of the working class and its only legitimate representative.^[106] Class struggle can only be realized through the Great Leader; difficult tasks in general (and revolutionary changes in particular) can only be introduced through—and by—him.^[106] Thus, in historical development the Great Leader is the leading force of the working class;^[106] he is a flawless, incorruptible human being who never makes mistakes, is always benevolent and rules for the benefit of the masses (working class).^[107] For the Great Leader system to function, a unitary ideology must be in place;^[108] in North Korea, this is known as the Monolithic Ideological System.^[108]

Kim dynasty

Main article:

Kim dynasty (North Korea)

The Kim dynasty began with Kim Il Sung, the first leader of the WPK and North Korea.

bloodline.^[110] Every child is educated in "the revolutionary history of the Great Leader" and "the revolutionary history of the Dear Leader" (Kim Jong Il).^[110] Kim Il Sung's first choice as successor was Kim Yong-ju, his brother, but he later decided to appoint his son Kim Jong Il instead; this decision was formalized at the 6th Congress.^[35] Kim Jong Il appointed his youngest son, Kim Jong Un, as his successor at the 3rd WPK Conference in 2010, and his son succeeded him in early 2011.^[52] Because of the familial succession and the appointment of family members to high office, the Kim family has been called a dynasty and a royal family.^[111] Dae-Sook Suh, the author of Kim Il Sung: The North Korean Leader, notes that "What he [Kim Il Sung] has built in the North, however, resembles more a political system to accommodate his personal rule than a communist or socialist state in Korea. It is not the political system he built that will survive him; it is his son [Kim Jong Il], whom he has designated heir, who will succeed his reign."^[112] The ruling Kim family has been described as the head of a de facto absolute monarchy^{[113][114][115]} or "hereditary dictatorship".^[116]

Monolithic Ideological System

Main article: Ten Principles for the Establishment of a Monolithic Ideological System

The Ten Principles for the Establishment of a Monolithic Ideological System are a set of ten principles and 65 clauses which establish standards for governance and guide the behaviours of the people of North Korea.^[117] The Ten Principles have come to supersede the national constitution or edicts by the Workers' Party, and in practice serve as the supreme law of the country.^{[118][119][120]}

Songbun

Main article: Songbun

Tomatoes, which are completely red to the core, are considered worthy Communists; apples, which are red only on the surface, are considered to need ideological improvement; and grapes are completely hopeless.

— The three main classifications in North Korean society (core, wavering, and hostile), are metaphorically described as tomatoes, apples, and grapes, respectively.^[121]

Songbun is the name given to the

caste system established on 30 May 1957 by the WPK Politburo when it adopted the resolution, "On the Transformation of the Struggle with Counter-Revolutionary Elements into an All-People All-Party Movement" (also known as the 30 May Resolution).^[122] This led to a purge in North Korean society in which every individual was checked for his or her allegiance to the party and its leader.^[123] The purge began in earnest in 1959, when the WPK established a new supervisory body headed by Kim Il Sung's brother, Kim Yong-ju.^[123] The people of North Korea were divided into three "forces" (hostile, neutral or friendly),^[123] and the force in which a person was classified was hereditary.^[123] Hostile forces cannot live near Pyongyang (the country's capital) or other major cities, or near North Korea's border with other countries.^[123] Songbun affects access to educational and employment opportunities and, particularly, eligibility to join the WPK.^[121] However, its importance has diminished with the fall of the communist regimes in Eastern Europe and the collapse of the North Korean economy (and the Public Distribution System) during the 1990s.^[124]

Organization

Central organization

The Congress is the party's highest body and convenes on an irregular basis.^[125] According to the party rules, the Central Committee can convene a congress if it gives the rest of the party at least a six months' notice.^[125] The party rules give the Congress seven responsibilities:^[125]

1. Electing the Central Committee
2. Electing the Central Auditing Commission
3. Electing the General Secretary
4. Examining the report of the outgoing Central Committee
5. Examining the report of the outgoing Central Auditing Commission
6. Discussing and enacting party policies
7. Revising the party rules and making amendments to these

In between WPK national meetings, the Central Committee is the highest decision-making institution.^[126] The Central Auditing Commission is responsible for supervising the party's finances and works separately from the Central Committee.^[127] The Central Committee elects the composition of several bodies to carry out its work. The 1st Plenary Session of a newly elected central committee elects the Central Military Commission (CMC), the Secretariat, the Politburo, the Presidium, and the Central Auditing Commission.^[128][129] The Politburo exercises the functions and powers of the Central Committee when a plenum is not in session.^[130] The Presidium is the party's highest decision-making organ when the Politburo, the Central Committee, the Conference of Representatives and the Congress are not in session.^[131] It was established at the 6th National Congress in 1980.^[131] The CMC is the highest decision-making institution on military affairs within the party and controls the operations of the Korean People's Army.^[132] The WPK General Secretary is by right Chairman of the CMC. Meanwhile, the Secretariat is the top implementation body and is headed by the WPK General Secretary and consists of several secretaries who normally head Central Committee departments, commissions, publications, and other organizations under it.^[133] The Central Auditing Commission resolves disciplinary issues involving party members. Investigative subjects range from graft to anti-party and counter-revolutionary activities, generally encompassing all party rules violations.^[134]

A first plenum of the Central Committee also elects the heads of departments, bureaus, and other institutions to pursue its work.^[135][136] The WPK currently has more than 15 Central Committee departments.^[136] Through these departments it controls several mass organisations and newspapers, such as Rodong Sinmun for instance.^[136] The Korean People's Army (KPA) is, according to the WPK rules, the "revolutionary armed power of the Workers' Party of Korea which inherited revolutionary traditions."^[137] The leading organ within the KPA is the General Political Bureau (GPB), which according to the WPK rules is defined "as an executive organ of the KPA Party Committee and is therefore entitled to the same authority as that of the Central Committee in conducting its activities."^[138] The GPB controls the party apparatus and every political officer within the KPA.^[138]

Lower-level organization

The WPK has local organizations for the three levels of local North Korean government: (1) provinces and province-level municipalities, (2) special city, ordinary cities and urban districts, and (3) rural counties and villages.^[139] North Korea has nine provinces, each with a provincial party committee; their composition is decided by the WPK.^[139]

The WPK has two types of membership: regular and probationary.^[140] Membership is open to those 18 years of age and older and is granted after the submission of an application (endorsed by two parties' members with at least two years in good standing) to a cell.^[140] The application is acted on by the cell's plenary session, and an affirmative decision is subject to ratification by a county-level party committee.^[140] After an application is approved a mandatory one-year probationary period may be waived under unspecified "special circumstances", allowing the candidate to become a full member.^[140] Recruitment is under the direction of the Organization and Guidance Department and its local branches.^[140]

The WPK claimed a membership of more than three million in 1988, a significant increase from the two million members announced in 1976; the increase may have resulted from the Three Revolutions Team Movement mobilization drive.^[141] At the time, 12 percent of the population held party membership, an abnormally large number for a communist country and a figure only comparable to Romania.^[142] Later figures have not been made publicly available,^[141] but membership today is estimated at 6.5 million.^[143]

North Korean society is divided into three classes: industrial workers, peasants, and samuwon (intelligentsia and petite bourgeoisie).^[141] Since 1948, industrial workers have constituted the largest percentage of party members, followed by peasants and samuwon.^[141] Beginning in the 1970s, when North Korea's population reached the 50-per cent-urban mark, the composition of the party's groups changed; more people working in state-owned enterprises were party members, and the number of members in agricultural cooperatives decreased.^[144]

Symbols

The emblem of the WPK is an adaptation of the communist hammer and sickle, with a traditional Korean calligraphy brush. The symbols represent the three classes in Korean society, as described by the WPK: the industrial workers (hammer), the peasants (sickle), and the samuwon (ink brush). The samuwon class consists of clerks, small traders, bureaucrats, professors, and writers. This class is unique to North Korean class analysis and was conceptualized to increase education and literacy among the country's population.^[145]

Electoral history

Supreme People's Assembly elections

Election	Party leader	Seats	+/–	Position
1948	Kim Il Sung	157 / 572	157	1st
1957		178 / 215	21	1st
1962		371 / 383	193	1st
1967		288 / 457	83	1st
1972		127 / 541	161	1st
1977		[data missing]
1982		[data missing]
1986		[data missing]
1990		601 / 687		1st
1998	Kim Jong Il	594 / 687	7	1st
2003		[data missing]
2009		606 / 687		1st
2014	Kim Jong Un	607 / 687	1	1st
2019		[data missing]

See also

• Elections in North Korea
• Politics of North Korea
• List of political parties in North Korea

Notes

1. ^ Korean: 조선로동당; MR: Chosŏn Rodongdang

References

Citations

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120. ^ Green 2012.
121. ^ ^{a b} Hunter 1999, pp. 3–11.
122. ^ Lankov 2007, p. 66.
123. ^ ^{a b c d e} Lankov 2007, p. 67.
124. ^ Lankov 2012.
125. ^ ^{a b c} Gause 2011, p. 147.
126. ^ National Institute for Unification Education 2014, p. 64.
127. ^ Korean Central News Agency 2016.
128. ^ Rules of the Workers' Party of Korea, article 3, section 24.
129. ^ National Institute for Unification Education 2014, p. 66−67.
130. ^ Buzo 1999, p. 30.
131. ^ ^{a b} Kim Nam-Sik 1982, p. 140.
132. ^ Rules of the Workers' Party of Korea, article 46.
133. ^ Madden 2017.
134. ^ Rules of the Workers' Party of Korea, article 3, section 28.
135. ^ Gause 2013, p. 35.
136. ^ ^{a b c} Gause 2013, p. 36.
137. ^ National Institute for Unification Education 2014, p. 55.
138. ^ ^{a b} National Institute for Unification Education 2014, p. 69.
139. ^ ^{a b} Cha & Hwang 2009, p. 202.
140. ^ ^{a b c d e} Cha & Hwang 2009, p. 193.
141. ^ ^{a b c d} Cha & Hwang 2009, p. 209.
142. ^ Lankov, Kwak & Cho 2016, pp. 193–214, 309–310.
143. ^ Na 2021.
144. ^ Cha & Hwang 2009, p. 210.
145. ^ Cumings 2005, pp. 404–405.

Sources

Books

• ISBN 978-0198038108
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• Buzo, Adrian (1999). The Guerilla Dynasty: Politics and Leadership in North Korea.
  ISBN 978-1860644146
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• ISBN 978-1598044683
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• Cumings, Bruce (2005). Korea's Place in the Sun: A Modern History (2nd ed.). New York: W.W. Norton and Company.
• Engels, Friedrich (1892) [1880]. Socialism, Utopian and Scientific. S. Sonnenschein.
• Frank, Rüdiger; Hoare, Jim; Köllner, Patrick; Pares, Susan (25 August 2011). Korea 2011: Politics, Economy and Society.
  ISBN 978-90-04-21935-9
  .
• Frank, Rüdiger; Hoare, Jim; Köllner, Patrick; Pares, Susan (2013). North Korea in 2012: Domestic Politics, the Economy and Social Issues.
  ISBN 9789004262973. Archived from the original
  on 17 October 2015.
• Gause, Ken E. (2011). North Korea Under Kim Chong-il: Power, Politics, and Prospects for Change.
  ISBN 978-0313381751
  .
• Gause, Ken (2013). "The Role and Influence of the Party Apparatus". In Park, Kyung-ae; Snyder, Scott (eds.). North Korea in Transition: Politics, Economy, and Society.
  ISBN 978-1442218123
  .
• Hunter, Helen-Louise (1999). Kim Il-song's North Korea.
  ISBN 978-0275962968
  .
• Kihl, Young Whan; Kim, Hong Nack (2006). North Korea: The Politics of Regime Survival (1st ed.). Armonk, New York: M.E. Sharpe.
  ISBN 978-0-7656-1638-8
  .
• Kim, Jong-il (1982). On the Juche Idea. Pyongyang: Foreign Languages Publishing House.
• Kwak, Tae-Hwan (2009). North Korea's Foreign Policy Under Kim Jong Il: New Perspectives.
  ISBN 978-0754677390
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• ISBN 978-1850655633
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• ISBN 978-0786451418
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• Lim, Jae-Cheon (2008). Kim Jong-il's Leadership of North Korea. Oxfordshire: Routledge.
  ISBN 9780203884720
  . Retrieved 20 January 2014.
• ISBN 978-1933633916
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• Oh, Kong Dan; Hassig, Ralph (2000). North Korea Through the Looking Glass.
  ISBN 978-0815764366
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• Marx, Karl; Engels, Friedrich (1906) [1848]. Manifesto of the Communist Party. C.H. Kerr.
• Scalapino, Robert A.; Lee, Chong-Sik (1972). Volume 2 of Communism in Korea: The Society. University of California Press.
• Seth, Michael J. (18 December 2019). A Concise History of Modern Korea: From the Late Nineteenth Century to the Present. Rowman & Littlefield.
  ISBN 9781538129050
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• So, Chae-Jong; Suh, Jae-Jung (2013). Origins of North Korea's Juche: Colonialism, War, and Development.
  ISBN 978-0739176580
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• Suh, Dae-sook (1988). Kim Il Sung: The North Korean Leader (1st ed.).
  ISBN 978-0231065733
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• Understanding North Korea 2014. Research and Development Division, National Institute for Unification Education, Ministry of Unification. 2014. Archived from the original on 14 October 2017.

Journal articles

• Cheong, Seong-Chang (2000). "Stalinism and Kimilsungism: A Comparative Analysis of Ideology and Power" (PDF). Asian Perspective. 24 (1): 133–161.
  doi:10.1353/apr.2000.0039. Archived from the original
  (PDF) on 17 October 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
• Choi, Brent; Hibbitts, Mi Jeong (2010). "North Korea's Succession May Go Smoothly After All" (PDF). Center for U.S.–Korea Policy. The Asian Foundation. pp. 1–5.
• Choy, Bong-youn (1984). A History of the Korean Reunification Movement: Its Issues and Prospects. Peoria, Illinois: Research Committee on Korean Reunification, Institute of International Studies, Bradley University.
• David-West, Alzo (2012). "North Korea and the Opinion of Fascism: A Case of Mistaken Identity". North Korean Review. 8 (1): 105–116.
  JSTOR 43910295
  .
• Frank, Ruediger (19 April 2018). "The North Korean Parliamentary Session and Budget Report 2018: Cautious Optimism for the Summit Year". 38 North. U.S.-Korea Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. Retrieved 22 April 2018.
• Kim, Nam-Sik (Spring–Summer 1982). "North Korea's Power Structure and Foreign Relations: an Analysis of the Sixth Congress of the KWP". The Journal of East Asian Affairs. 2 (1): 125–151.
  JSTOR 23253510
  .
• Lankov, Andrei Nikolaevich; Kwak, In-ok; Cho, Choong-Bin (2016). "The Organizational Life: Daily Surveillance and Daily Resistance in North Korea". Journal of East Asian Studies. 12 (2): 193–214.
  ISSN 1598-2408
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• Lee, Chong-sik (May 1982). "Evolution of the Korean Workers' Party and the Rise of Kim Chŏng-il".
  JSTOR 2643871
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• Lee, Grace (2003). "The Political Philosophy of Juche" (PDF). Stanford Journal of East Asian Affairs. 3 (1): 105–111.
• Lee, Kyo Duk (2004). "The successor theory of North Korea". 'Peaceful Utilization of the DMZ' as a National Strategy. Korean Institute for National Reunification. pp. 1–52.
  ISBN 898479225X
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• Yoon, Dae-kyu (2003). "The Constitution of North Korea: Its Changes and Implications". Fordham International Law Journal. 27 (4): 1289–1305.

Government publications

• Kim, Jong-un (7 April 2021). "Closing Speech to the 6th Conference of WPK Cell Secretaries". National Committee of North Korea. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
• "Executive Order – Blocking Property of the Government of North Korea and the Workers' Party of Korea, and Prohibiting Certain Transactions with Respect to North Korea".
  The White House
  . 16 March 2016. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
• 조선로동당규약 [Rules of the Workers' Party of Korea] (PDF) (in Korean). 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 June 2017.

News and magazine articles

• "4th Party Conference of WPK Held". Rodong Sinmun. 12 April 2012. Archived from the original on 18 February 2013.
• Chen, Zhi (20 February 2012). "DPRK's ruling party to convene conference in April".
  Xinhua. Archived from the original
  on 8 January 2014.
• Hitchens, Christopher (1 February 2010). "A Nation of Racist Dwarfs". Fighting Words. Slate. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
• Koko, B. J. (1 June 2021). "N. Korea creates 'first secretary' post in revised party rules". Yonhap News Agency. Archived from the original on 1 June 2021.
• Lankov, Andrei (3 December 2012). "North Korea's new class system". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 3 December 2011. Retrieved 18 March 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
• Lankov, Andrei (15 January 2014). "The family feuds of the Kim dynasty". NK News. Retrieved 18 March 2014.
• ——— (24 June 2021). "Where is North Korea Heading? Major Political Rule Changes May Tell Us". NK News. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
• Marshall, Colin (12 April 2010). "Immersion in propaganda, race-based nationalism and the un-figure-outable vortex of Juche Thought: Colin Marshall talks to B.R. Myers, author of The Cleanest Race: How North Koreans See Themselves and Why it Matters". 3 Quarks Daily. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
• McCurry, Justin (19 December 2011a). "Kim Jong-un, 'great successor' poised to lead North Korea". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
• McCurry, Justin (29 December 2011b). "Kim Jong-un declared 'supreme leader' in North Korea". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
• Min, Namgung (13 October 2008). "Kim Jong Il's Ten Principles: Restricting the People". Daily NK. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
• Na, Hye-yoon (6 January 2021). 北, 당원 대폭 늘었나 ... 당 대회 참석수로 '650만 명' 추정 [Has party membership surged in the north? Estimated attendance of '6.5 million' at party convention]. News1 Korea (in Korean). Retrieved 5 November 2021.
• "New Party Central Auditing Commission inaugurated". Korean Central News Agency. 10 May 2016. Archived from the original on 14 May 2016. Retrieved 4 June 2022 – via The Pyongyang Times.
• "North Korea leader Kim becomes chairman of ruling Workers' Party: NHK". Reuters. 9 May 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
• "North Korea's Kim Jong-un named 'marshal'". BBC News. 18 July 2012. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
• "North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un given new title in symbolic move aimed at bolstering his authority". AP News. 11 January 2021. Retrieved 4 June 2022 – via CNBC.
• "N. Korea declares Kim Jong-Un commander of military". Agence France-Presse. 30 December 2011. Archived from the original on 24 February 2014. Retrieved 30 December 2011.
• "N. Korea revises leadership ideology to legitimize rule of Kim Jong-un". Yonhap News Agency. 12 August 2013. Archived from the original on 10 June 2016. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
• Oh, Grace (13 December 2013). "N. Korea executes leader's uncle for 'treason': KCNA". Yonhap News Agency. Archived from the original on 12 July 2018.
• Seo, Yoonjung; Berlinger, Joshua (2 June 2021). "Kim Jong Un gets new second-in-command in major changes to North Korea's ruling party". CNN. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
• Sheridan, Michael (16 September 2007). "A tale of two dictatorships: The links between North Korea and Syria". The Times. London. Retrieved 9 April 2010.
• "북한 노동당 규약 주요 개정 내용" [Major revisions to North Korea's Workers' Party rules]. Yonhap News Agency. 1 June 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2022.

Websites

• "13 IMCWP Resolution, Let us jointly commemorate the Birth Centenary of the Great Leader comrade President Kim Il Sung as a Grand Political Festival of the World's Humankind". Solidnet.org. 23 December 2011. Archived from the original on 11 September 2012. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
• "13th IMCWP: An event of major importance". Communist Party of Greece. 29 November 2011. Archived from the original on 8 January 2012. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
• Green, Christopher (5 June 2012). "Wrapped in a Fog: On the North Korean Constitution and the Ten Principles". Sino-NK. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
• Madden, Michael (18 October 2017). "The Party Roundup: Preliminary Look at North Korea's October 7 Central Committee Plenum". 38 North. Retrieved 18 October 2017.
• Lee, Gee-dong (3 September 2021). "The Changing Status and Role of the North Korean Military". Global Asia. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
• Rank, Michael (10 April 2012), Lifting the cloak on North Korean secrecy: The Cleanest Race, How North Koreans See Themselves by B. R. Myers (Book review), Asia Times, archived from the original on 12 January 2013, retrieved 13 December 2012{{citation}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)

Further reading

• Kim Ji-ho, ed. (2016). Understanding Workers' Party of Korea (PDF). Translated by Kim Yong-nam; Mun Myong-song. Pyongyang:
  ISBN 978-9946-0-1468-5
  .

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Workers' Party of Korea.

• Rodong Sinmun – the official newspaper of the WPK Central Committee
• Workers' Party of Korea Archived 28 November 2020 at the Wayback Machine at Naenara