Korean solidarity in Finland

by New Worker correspondent

Dermot Hudson, the chair of the Korean Friendship Association UK, joined other friends of the DPR Korea for a seminar in Helsinki last week. To mark its 40th anniversary the European Regional Society for the Study of the Juche Idea (ERSSJI) organised the seminar in the  Finnish capital under the title  of “Independence, Peace and Social Development” in the building of the Finland -Russia society. Finland itself was one of the first non-socialist European countries to establish diplomatic relations with People’s Korea in the early 1970s. And Finland has a long tradition of friendship and solidarity with the DPRK as well as of studying the Juche idea and Korean-style socialism.
Presiding over the seminar were Prof Matteo Carbonelli, the director-general of the ERSSJI and Juha Kieski , the secretary-general of the ERSSJI and head of the Finnish Juche Idea Study Group.
A delegation from the DPRK embassy in Sweden took part in the discussion along with a delegation from the International Institute of the Juche Idea based in Japan. KFA Chair Dermot Hudson who also heads the British Group For the Study of the Juche Idea was there along with members of Finnish Juche Idea and DPRK friendship organisations. Participating online were people from Austria, Bulgaria,Denmark , Germany , Russia , Slovakia and the UK.
Dermot Hudson said that “the Juche idea needs to be studied deeply and disseminated more widely in Europe because it is extremely relevant to the needs of the European people and can make a great contribution to independence , peace and social development which are all vitally necessary for the peoples of Europe.
“At the moment Europe lacks independence . Many European countries are members of the US-controlled Nato and have US bases and troops . Many European countries are culturally enslaved by US imperialism for example the TV and cinema is dominated by poor quality American films and the streets are full of Yankee fast food chains . Economically  ,Europe is controlled by supra-national organisations like the European Union , the IMF , the World Bank , the WTO and the World Economic Forum . Many European countries lack economic independence as their economies are dominated by US multi-nationals”.

Return to the land of Juche

by Dermot Hudson

Dermot Hudson at the seminar

Dermot Hudson, the Chair of the UK Korean Friendship Association, recently spent a week in the Democratic  People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) to join in the celebrations marking  the foundation of the Workers Party of Korea (then the Communist Party of North Korea) on 10th October 1945.The Communist Party of North Korea later developed into the Workers’ Party of North Korea (WPNK) when it united with the New Democratic Party (NDP) in 1946. The Workers Party of Korea as it exists today was founded in June 1949 by merging the WPNK with the Workers’ Party of South Korea (WPSK) and  another smaller movement known as the People’s Party.


I travelled to People’s Korea on the 7th October and stayed until the  14th October. It was a week in paradise away from the stress of life under decaying capitalism and imperialism!  This was my 20th  visit to People’s Korea.The purpose of the visit was to participate in the celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the foundation of the great Workers Party of Korea (WPK), the supreme general staff of the Korean revolution and organiser and guide of all the victories of the Korean people. I was leading a delegation of the British Group For the Study of the Juche Idea.
It was not my first time visiting the DPRK to attend keynote anniversaries; I had previously visited the DPRK for the 70th  anniversary of the foundation of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in September 2018 and for the 70th  anniversary of the foundation of the Workers Party of Korea in October 2015 . What I saw this time far exceeded the celebrations I witnessed in 2018 and 2015 in terms of scale and quality.
Our delegation travelled via Beijing, and arrived on the afternoon of the 7th  October. Waiting to check in for the Air Koryo flight we met delegations from  Brazil, Poland, Denmark, Finland. Switzerland, Bulgaria and many other countries. It is a myth that the DPRK is “isolated”. In fact not only did followers of the Juche Idea and friendship organisations make their way to Pyongyang but also high-level delegations from China, Russia,Vietnam and Laos including Party general secretaries.There were also high level delegations from the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Republic of Nicaragua.The Iranian delegation got a round of applause on the plane.
Even before we landed in Pyongyang we got a flavour of the rapid development of People’s Korea – namely Air Koryo’s (the national airline of the DPRK ) in-flight catering has been upgraded and improved.The stewardess handed out boxes which contained not only the famous Air Koryo burger but biscuits and other confectionery including chocolate bars. On the way from the airport we saw whole new streets that were not there in 2019 and 2024. A block of flats near to the Koryo Hotel that was under construction in April 2024 had been completed.
Our delegation had been invited by the Korean Association of Social Scientists but was guided by Kim Kyong Chol of the Korea Association for Cultural Exchange with Foreign Countries. Kim was a keen singer and an enthusiastic person.
During our visit we visited the following; the Korean Revolution Museum, the Museum of Party Foundation, the Pyongyang Central Zoo and Natural History Museum , the Central Cadres Training School of the Workers Party of Korea ,the Great Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum , Hwasong Street at night , the Taekwondo Hall, the Juche Idea Tower and Kim Il Sung University.We were honoured guests at the National Meeting and Grand Mass Gymnastics and Artistic Performance on the 9th October , at the Military Parade on the 10th October and the Public Procession and Torchlight Gala on the theme of the  immortal banner of building a just and peaceful world.
It is difficult to detail all that happened and that we saw in the DPRK so I will just give a few important highlights .
Firstly , the International Seminar on the Juche Idea that was held in the People’s Palace of Culture from the 8th to the 9th October attracted participants from all over the world including the following countries; Austria , Brazil, Belarus, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Italy, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Poland, Russia, Switzerland and many others . 
I made a speech on behalf of the British Group For the Study of the Juche Idea in which I said (in part ) the following “the Juche idea teaches the peoples of the world to build countries that are politically independent , economically self-sufficient and self-reliant in defence. Peoples’ Korea itself is a living example of the application of independence , self-sufficiency and self-defence. Whilst conflicts rage in many parts of the world, the Korean peninsula enjoys peace thanks to the nuclear deterrent of the DPRK .Today People’s Korea is a society free from division, conflict and disorder. It is an oasis of calm in a troubled world”
We attended the national meeting for the 80th  founding anniversary of the WPK and the Grand Mass Gymnastics and Artistic Performance Long Live the Workers' Party of Korea in the May Day stadium on Rungna Island.The May Day stadium is actually the biggest stadium in the world with a seating capacity of over 150,000. It is not rotting and rusting as falsely asserted by the reptile bourgeois media but in good condition.
First we heard the speech of respected leader Kim Jong Un, the general secretary of the Workers Party of Korea. He rounded off his speech with the following words “availing myself of this opportunity, I will always cherish love for the people and not neglect my obligation of requital. I affirm my commitment to working harder to live up to their trust.
“I will surely turn this country into a more affluent and beautiful land and into the best socialist paradise in the world, with belief in the people supporting our Party and by always becoming one in mind and body with them”.
At the end of the meeting there was a rousing rendition of the Internationale by a military band and a choir. After the national meeting the mass game “Long live the Workers Party of Korea “ was held .This was a dazzling array of colour, gymnastics and songs.The famous DPRK singer Kim Ok Ju sang many of the songs. In my opinion it surpassed other DPRK mass games such as “Arirang and “Glorious Country” .
The set piece of any DPRK celebration is the military parade. I had never attended a night-time DPRK military parade before. Previously I had only attended parades during the day time.
This parade was not held under easy or ideal conditions but in the rain and wind. Other countries would not have been able to do this but People’s Korea, Korea of Juche was able to do this.The parade included the Korean People’s Army fighters who had fought for the liberation of Kursk  and also new ICBM ballistic missiles. A friend from Italy said to me as the new ICBM rumbled past “that is for Washington”. At the end of the parade comrade Kim Jong Un came and waved at the crowd.To my astonishment I found myself within five metres of him. I could not believe it .
No less impressive was the Public Procession and Torchlight Gala on the 11th October in Kim Il Sung square.The sky was lit up by lasers and later fireworks.The procession was led by a float which depicted the history of the Workers Party of Korea starting with the Down With Imperialism Union. I was delighted to see modern DPRK farm tractors in the procession.
We were among the first foreigners to visit the Central Cadres Training School of the Workers Party of Korea which is situated on the outskirts of Pyongyang. It is the size of a university. Displayed at the school are the portraits of Marx and Lenin.There is also a red flag displayed in every lecture room on the instructions of Kim Jong Un who said that they must uphold the Red Flag of communism. Seeing the portraits of Marx and Lenin made me deeply realise the falsity of the ultra-leftist slanderers who assert that the DPRK had abandoned Marxism-Leninism and  the communist ideal. Revisionists and ultra-leftists both criticise the DPRK from different ends of the spectrum but at the end of the day it is just finding excuses not to support the most demonised and most advanced and revolutionary socialist country, it is also doing the dirty work of the CIA for them.
We saw that Pyongyang was a blaze of light and colour at night.The imperialists are lying when they say that there is no electricity in the DPR Korea. Rather than “everyone starving”, we saw no homeless or beggars on the streets  and the guide for another delegation said that people get free housing and food only costs 0.3 dollars per month. Just compare that to the UK, No comment!
Now the construction of the 4th stage of Hwasong Street is under way, I saw  it with my own eyes.This rapid development is being carried out under conditions of intense sanctions by the imperialists as well as natural disasters and the DPRK’s border being closed for four years due to the global health crisis.This development is being achieved without outside help, ‘aid’ or foreign capital. It is a miracle of self-reliance and shows what a socialist country can do when it relies on its own resources and believes in itself .
I will conclude here. I would like to thank the following for their kind assistance; Kim Kyong Chol and other guides from both the Korean Association for Cultural Exchange with Foreign Countries and the Korean Association of Social Scientists, the staff of the Koryo Hotel in Pyongyang and the DPRK Embassy in London.

People’s Korea stands firm!

by New Worker correspondent

The Korean people are marching towards socialism and have achieved great miracles, thereby building a great future for the country and the people. That was the message of Dermot Hudson who joined millions of Koreans celebrating the 80 th anniversary of the foundation of the Workers Party of Korea during his trip to the land of Juche earlier in the month.
“Pyongyang was a blaze of light and colour at night. The imperialists are lying when they say that there is no electricity in the DPRK. Rather than ‘everyone starving’ we saw no homeless or beggars on the streets” the Chair of the UK Korean Friendship Association said. “People get free housing and food only costs 0.3 dollars per month. Just compare that to the UK. No comment”!
And this was echoed by all those who had come to hear Dermot Hudson talk about his recent visit to People’s Korea at the Kings Cross Neighbourhood Centre in London last weekend.
The official delegate of KFA Cambodia, together with NCP leader Andy Brooks and KFA activists from Staffordshire and the West Country, opened the general discussion which looked at the meaning of Korean-style socialism as well as the ‘digital colonialism’ of the imperialists and the brainwashing of the BBC and the rest of imperialist lie machine.
Dermot Hudson will be giving a report back to the new Ipswich New Worker Cell & Supporters group in February and it was decided to hold a picket of the BBC in London next month.

•  The KFA Cambodia official delegate with NCP leader Andy Brooks, Dermot Hudson and other campaigners at the meeting

Juche in Wrexham!

by New Worker correspondent

The Korean Friendship Association (KFA) participated in the Wrexham Socialist Bookfair, organised by Red Bookfairs, at the Ty Pawb Centre in Wrexham last weekend.
The KFA stall, run by KFA Chair Dermot Hudson, had on display the works People’s Korea leader Kim Jong Un as well as classics by great leader Kim Il Sung and Chairman Kim Jong Il and as well as literature from the DPRK and the KFA. Discussions were held with visitors to the stall. Leaflets were given out and literature was sold.
The KFA will be back in north Wales and will expand its work in north Wales and other areas of the UK even if some reactionaries do not like it! We will fly the flag of Juche high!

A victory for the Korean people

Dermot Hudson and Andy Brooks in Brixton

by New Worker correspondent

In July 1953 US imperialism signed an armistice ending the Korean war. The war began when the Americans and their lackeys attacked north Korea in June 1950. It ended with the USA beaten to a standstill by the Korean People’s Army and the Chinese volunteers on 27th  July 1953. But though the USA signed the armistice it never honoured the terms of the truce. It still refuses to normalise relations with the people’s government in the north and the Korean peninsula remains divided, with the south still occupied by thousands of US troops. And all of this was commemorated last weekend by Korean Friendship Association (KFA) campaigners in Brixton.
NCP leader Andy Brooks joined other comrades marking the 72nd anniversary of the Korean people in the Korean war at a south London community centre just a stone’s throw from Brixton station. In his opening remarks KFA Chair Dermot Hudson said “in today’s world we are seeing an increase in aggression and intervention by US imperialism and its proxies such as the Zionists so it is important to increase solidarity with People’s Korea, an anti-imperialist socialist country. We are here today to mark two important victories of People’s Korea against imperialism. Tomorrow July 27th is the 72nd anniversary of the victory against the US imperialists in the Fatherland Liberation War and in less than three weeks from now it will be the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Korea from Japanese colonial rule on 15th August. Both victories were the fruit of the Juche idea and are associated with the leadership of President Kim Il Sung. Both are an example of a small country winning victory by its own efforts against overwhelming odds”. 
And in his contribution Andy Brooks, the general secretary of the New Communist Party, recalled the great victory of the Korean people in the Fatherland Liberation War pointing out that the south Korean troops in the war were reduced to the role of ancillaries and servants for the Americans and their lackeys flying the false flag of the United Nations to cover their criminal aggression.
The speeches were followed by a Q & A session which sparked off an interesting discussion about the DPR Korea’s policies on Palestine and Israel and questions about building solidarity with People’s Korea across London and throughout the country. 

Behind the mirror of lies

by New Worker correspondent

A hotel in the west end of Glasgow was recently the venue for the first Korean Friendship Association event in Glasgow for several years. Hosted by the Stand for Peace pacifist group  who regularly hold vigils in Glasgow and other Scottish cities and towns, it was the occasion for KFA UK’s Chair, Dermot Hudson, to address a packed audience on the theme of People’s Korea behind the Mirror of Lies. The audience, which included members of No to Nato, the NCP and other Scottish communist movements, was broadly sympathetic and genuinely curious about the DPR Korea, although one person seemed to take the Guardian and BBC too seriously. 
One of the lies which Dermot Hudson exposed was that the Western media often report that senior DPRK figures had been executed, only to have egg on their face when they reappear in public months later. This was just one small example of the lies constantly pumped out by the puppet regime in south Korea and their imperialist backers. On a lighter note, he caused amusement by citing an American who seriously claimed that while in the DPRK a power failure stopped a train which meant that he and other passengers then had to get out and push.
The reality is that DPRK citizens enjoy free housing, free health care, and free education. On his recent visit he noted a vast amount of construction work in Pyongyang and a vast programme of rural housing and factory building is underway.
 After his speech a healthy discussion took place around such matters as landownership as well as all sorts of questions about the political and social structures in People’ Korea. Hudson said the DPRK was an example of the Marxist-Leninist dictatorship of the proletariat. The impact of the recent deepening of relations between Russia and the DPRK was also discussed. To any doubting Thomases in the audience the speaker, while aware of the considerable expense involved, said that a visit would confirm his statements.
 It is to be hoped that this resumption of KFA activity north of the border will be followed up by future events. 

US out of Korea!

by New Worker correspondent

NCP leader Andy Brooks joined other Korean solidarity activists outside the US embassy in London on Friday 20th June to mark the anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War and call for an end to the American occupation of south Korea.
The Friday evening protest was called by the Korean Friendship Association (KFA) whose chair, Dermot Hudson, said “we are here today in front of the US Embassy , the embassy of the American empire , the empire of evil, because on the 25th June it will be the 75th  anniversary of the provocation of the Korean War by the US imperialists and their puppets .The Korean War never really ended because no peace treaty was ever concluded only an armistice”. Dermot Hudson also said that the US imperialists wanted to invade the DPR Korea not only to destroy the socialist system but  also to seize the valuable rare earth deposits of the DPRK .
A message of support was received from KFA Germany which was read out . In part the message said “ Until this day 30,000 US-soldiers occupy the southern part of the Korean peninsula. Until today the US have nuclear weapons stationed in South Korea and they still continue their aggressive military manoeuvres against the DPRK. That is why it is so important to show solidarity with socialist Korea and openly fight against the US-aggression. Your picket here in front of the US embassy in London today is an important part in the fight against the US imperialist aggression”.