The 6th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) was held in the February 8 House of Culture in Pyongyang, North Korea, from 10 to 14 October 1980. The congress is the highest organ of the party, and is stipulated to be held every four years. 3,062 delegates represented the party's membership; 117 foreign delegates attended the congress, without the right to speak. The congress saw the reappointment of Kim Il Sung as WPK General Secretary and the Presidium of the Politburo established as the highest organ of the party between congresses.
Little is known about the preparations for the 6th Congress. It was convened a decade after the 5th WPK Congress (in 1970), outside the party norm of a quadrennial meeting.[2] There was no official reason for its postponement, but it was probably due to the fact that WPK General Secretary Kim Il Sung spent much of the 1970s gathering support (and creating an independent power base) for his son and planned successor Kim Jong Il.[2] In addition, a great deal of time was spent restructuring party organizations and functions.[2] The primary reason for the 6th Congress was to formalize Kim Jong Il as Kim Il Sung's chosen successor.[2]
Delegates and attendees
The 6th Congress was attended by 3,062 delegates with voting rights and 158 without them; this marked an increase of 1,349 voting and 137 non-voting delegates from the 5th Congress.[3] The increase indicates a growth in membership.[3] The 6th Congress is significant for its large number of delegations: 177 delegations from 118 countries were represented.[3] While communist and workers' parties customarily invite "fraternal parties" to party congresses, the WPK had taken the unusual step of not inviting foreign delegations to the 1st, 2nd and 5th congresses.[3] Among those invited this time were the Chinese Communist Party and the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.[3] The WPK leadership also invited a number of non-communist parties and organizations to the congress.[3] The official report said that 155 foreign organizations from 105 countries attended the congress, indicating that 22 delegations remained incognito.[4] For unknown reasons, no foreign delegates spoke at the congress.[4]
The Congress
The 6th Congress was held at the February 8 House of Culture from 10 to 14 October 1980, with a recess on 11 October.[5] Compared to its predecessor, the 6th Congress was fairly short.[5] It began with opening addresses by Kim Il Sung, the Executive Bureau, the Secretariat and the Credentials Committee.[5] After the opening remarks, the congress' agenda was decided: "(1) Summing up the work of the Party Central Committee; (2) Evaluation of the work of the Party Central Auditing Committee; (3) Revision of the Party Rules and (4) Election of the central leading agencies of the Party."[5] This was followed by a report on the Central Committee's performance since the 5th Congress.[5] The 6th Congress was adjourned on 11 October, and 12 October began with the election of a committee to draft congressional decisions.[5]Lee Nak-bin then delivered a report on the work of the Central Auditing Committee since the 5th Congress.[5] The rest of the day was spent discussing the Central Committee report.[5] 13 October was devoted to debates and congratulatory speeches, and on 14 October the congress elected the 6th Central Committee and the 6thCentral Auditing Commission.[5]
Significant at the 6th Congress was the generational shift within the WPK, with Kim Il Sung planning to formalize the position of Kim Jong Il.[6] 248 members were elected to the 6th Central Committee: 145 full members and 103 candidate members.[6] This was an increase of 76 members from the 5th Central Committee, which had 172 members.[6] The expansion of the Central Committee is a sign of an expanding party, since one Central Committee member represents 10,000 party members.[6] Of the 248 members, "139 (60 full members and 79 candidate members)" were new to the Central Committee.[6] However, compared to previous Central Committees the replacement rate was relatively low (41.4%, compared with 72.2% at the 5th Congress).[7] Only two members have sat on the Central Committee since the 1st Central Committee: Kim il-sung and Kim Il.[6] The cause of the high Central Committee replacement rate had been intra-party conflict, and the Yanan, South Korean, domestic and Soviet-Korean factions (as well as ideological opponents of hereditary succession) had been purged from the Central Committee at previous congresses.[8] Amendments to Party rules changed the name of the Political Committee back to its original name (the Politburo), and created a Presidium within the Politburo to further centralize the power of the ruling elite.[8]
Of the 158 delegates with speaking rights, 39 participated in the debates—much-lower participation than at the 5th Congress, in which 98 of 137 delegates with speaking rights participated.[4] All debate participants were Party bureaucrats and technocrats, making it the first congress at which the "revolutionary generation" was not present.[9] 38 topics were debated: twenty-one focused on the economy, ten on politics, five on social and cultural affairs, one on military affairs and one on possible unification with South Korea.[10]Socialist construction, the designated primary task of the party during the 1980s, was the focal point of the discussions.[10] The 6th Congress ended with Kim Il Sung presenting a summary of what had been decided: "(a) Shining victory of the Three Revolutions—achievements in ideological, technological and cultural revolutions; (b) Conversion of entire society along the lines of Juche idea; (c) Independent and peaceful reunification of the fatherland; (d) Strengthening of the solidarity with the anti-imperialist self-reliant forces; (e) strengthening of Party work."[10]
The 1st plenum of the 6th Central Committee, to elect the central party leadership, was held immediately after the 6th Congress.[11] 34 members were elected to the 6th Politburo, an increase from 15 in the 5th Politburo.[8] Of these 34, 19 were full members and 15 candidate members.[8] Five members were elected to the Presidium,[8] and Kim Jong Il was ranked fourth in the hierarchy of the Politburo and the Presidium.[8] The 6thSecretariat was composed of nine members,[12] with Kim Jong Il ranked second.[12] The size of the Secretariat did not change from the 5th Congress, but of its nine members only Kim Il Sung was from the party's "revolutionary generation" (60% of the members of the 5th Secretariat came from that generation).[12] Kim Il Sung and Kim Jung-rin were the only incumbents to be reelected.[13] The elected 6thCentral Military Commission (CMC) was composed of 19 members, of which Kim Jong Il ranked third (behind Kim Il Sung and O Jin-u).[13] This marked the first time in the party's history that the CMC membership was made public.[13] Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il became the only officials with seats in all four bodies: the Presidium, Politburo, Secretariat and CMC.[13] While Kim Jong Il was outranked in the Presidium, Politburo and Secretariat, none of the members who outranked him had positions in other bodies (except for O Jin-ju, second-ranked member of the CMC).[13] Below is a list of members (and their respective rankings) of the Presidium, full and candidate members of the Politburo, Secretariat and CMC:[14]
Symbol
Meaning
‡
Members of the Presidium of the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea
The 1st plenum saw the "revolutionary generation" retire from their executive posts, surrendering them to the new generation of Kim Jong Il; however, they still controlled the highest organs of power: the Presidium and the Politburo.[15] The plenum saw the disappearance of Kim Yong-ju (Kim Il Sung's brother, considered his chosen successor before Kim Jong Il), Kim Dong-gyu, Ryu Jang-sik and Ri Yong-mu from important party positions.[15] The reason for the purge is unknown, but presumably linked to Kim Il Sung's time-consuming consolidation of his son's power base.[15]
Policy decisions
Kim Jong-il as successor
Kim Il-sung with his son and chosen successor Kim Jong-il at the congress.
Kim Yong-ju was believed to be Kim Il Sung's first choice as successor, and his authority increased until he became co-chairman of the North–South Coordination Committee.[16] From late 1972 until the 6th Congress, Kim Yong-ju became an increasingly remote figure within the regime; at the 6th Congress, he lost his seats in the Politburo and on the Central Committee.[16] However, rumors were confirmed that Kim Il Sung began grooming Kim Jong Il in 1966.[16] From 1974 until the 6th Congress, Kim Jong Il (called the "Party centre" by North Korean media) became the second-most-powerful man in North Korea.[16]
The choice of Kim Jong Il as Kim Il Sung's successor met with considerable criticism.[17] Critics accused Kim Il Sung of creating a dynasty, turning North Korea into a feudal state.[17] An anonymous South Korean critic said, "Hereditary succession of power [was an] inevitable consequence of the elder Kim's irrevocable commitment to the dream of founding a dynasty of his own and of his family",[17] adding that Kim Jong Il's rise to power was proof of the "degeneration" of the WPK into a "thoroughly personalized family affair built up around a personality cult."[17] The Communist Party of the Soviet Union, the Chinese Communist Party and other ruling parties of socialist states did not approve Kim Jong Il's appointment as heir apparent.[18] Kim Il Sung's choice of successor arguably concerned the promotion of revolutionary zeal in the country (taking into account the negative treatmentJoseph Stalin received from his successor).[19]
Korean unification
At the congress, Kim Il Sung stressed the importance of "achieving the goal of the unification of the fatherland which has been the greatest and long-cherised desire of the whole people is the most important revolutionary task facing the Party".[20] He warned his audience that if Korea remained divided, it might never be unified again because of relations among the big powers.[20] Kim Il Sung called for the establishment of the "Democratic Confederal Republic of Korea" (DCRK), a national government of North and South Korea.[21] The DCRK would be ruled by a Supreme Confederal National Congress (SCNC), with an equal number of representatives from North and South Korea. The SCNC representatives would elect a Presidium, which would rule on its behalf.[21] Under this system, South Korea would remain capitalist and North Korea socialist.[22] However, the WPK leadership named three conditions for North Korea to join the DCRK: (1) Social democratization of South Korea, the ouster of its current ruling class, repeal of the Anti-Communist and National Security Laws and replacement of its military regime by a democratic one representing the will of the people; (2) Reducing tensions with the establishment of a truce and a peace agreement; (3) Reducing American interference in the region, holding open the possibility of improved relations with the United States if it supported Korean reunification.[23]
Man is a social being living in a community called nation, and his struggle for self-determination is waged within the boundary of a nation-state. A search for national self-determination takes top priority over other matters in a revolution of any country. A nation must exist before revolution, construction, ideology, or ideal, and they lose their meanings in the absence of a nation. Whether we uphold nationalism, communism, or any other ideology we must recover our nationhood first."
—Party secretary Kim Jung-rin, on North Korea's unification ideology[24]
The 6th Congress signified a move away from orthodox communism, with the Juche given primacy over Marxism–Leninism; in foreign relations, an independent national policy was given primacy over proletarian internationalism.[15] According to political analyst Kim Nam-sik, "They [changes] represent a marked departure from the fundamental principles of communism, and a new orientation for the North Korean future in the 1980s."[15] In contrast to other ruling communist parties in socialist states, democratic centralism in the WPK did not hold the leader (the WPK General Secretary) accountable.[15] In many ways it functioned the other way around, with the WPK accountable to the leader.[15] This unusual system is rooted in North Korea's leader theory.[15]
In contrast to other socialist states (which upheld the orthodox communist belief that the masses are masters of historical development), WPK ideology asserts that the masses can only initiate revolutionary change through a leader.[25] While other socialist states often emphasized certain historical figures, due weight was still given to the people.[25] The opposite occurred in North Korea, where the party line was "The great revolutionary task of the working class is pioneered and led to victory by the Leader and completed under the leadership of the Leader only."[25] From this perspective, the revolutionary task given the working class by the other socialist regimes became the sole responsibility of the leader in North Korea.[25] The leader theory supports one-man leadership, since all important tasks can only be accomplished by a great leader it argues.[25] This ideological outlook may explain why Kim Il Sung appointed his son, Kim Jong Il, as his successor.[25] In North Korea, Kim Il Sung was considered a "Great Leader" with a decisive role; he was cited by official media as the man who established the WPK and founder of the Juche idea.[26] Because of this, Kim Il Sung was not "elected" WPK General Secretary; the position was bestowed on him by divine right.[26]
For the sake of realizing unification of the fatherland, the South and the North should not stick to their respective ideologies of communism and capitalism, but the two should put one common ideology of nation before the two ideologies so as to achieve a union based on the idea of nation.
—Kim Il-Sung, emphasizing that the nation (not capitalism or communism) should be the common ideology of the two Koreas[24]
While North Korea had already begun to move from a foreign policy based upon proletarian internationalism at the Conference of Party Representatives in 1966, the WPK leadership had never explicitly broken with proletarian internationalism as it did at the 6th Congress.[27] In theory, a communist party supports policy contributing to the world revolution.[27] Communist regimes rarely lived up to this ideal; by the 1950s, ideological schisms within the world communist movement made it all but impossible.[27] From 1966 onwards, North Korea strengthened relations with neutral countries in the global Cold War.[27] Proletarian internationalism was replaced with a national, independent foreign policy;[27] if a socialist and non-socialist country were at war, North Korea could (in theory) support the non-socialist country if it benefited North Korea.[27] At the 6th Congress, Kim Il Sung attached more importance to relations with Third World countries than to unity in the socialist camp.[27] Nevertheless, North Korea still received massive funds and aid from the Soviet bloc, the People's Republic of China and relations with the United States would remain bitterly cold. While North Korea argues that independence and proletarian internationalism are not exclusive, in orthodox communist theory they are.[27]
In the North Korean government, the Cabinet is the administrative and executive body. The North Korean government consists of three branches: administrative, legislative, and judicial. However, they are not independent of each other, but all branches are under the exclusive political leadership of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK).
The General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea is the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the ruling party in North Korea, and the country's supreme leader. Party rules stipulate that the party congress elects the general secretary. The party conference and the Central Committee are empowered to remove and elect the party leader. The general secretary is "ex officio" Chairman of the WPK Central Military Commission and leads the work of the secretariat. Additionally, the general secretary is by right of office member of the WPK Presidium, the WPK Politburo and the WPK Secretariat.
The Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is the sole ruling party of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea. Founded in 1949 from the merger of the Workers' Party of North Korea and the Workers' Party of South Korea, the WPK is the oldest active party in Korea. It also controls the Korean People's Army, North Korea's armed forces. The WPK is the largest party represented in the Supreme People's Assembly and coexists with two other legal parties making up the Democratic Front for the Reunification of Korea. However, these minor parties are completely subservient to the WPK and must accept the WPK's "leading role" as a condition of their existence. The WPK is banned in the Republic of Korea under the National Security Act and is sanctioned by the United Nations, the European Union, Australia, and the United States.
The Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea (CMC) is an organ of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) which heads the Korean People's Army (KPA).
The Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea is the highest organ between national meetings of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the ruling party of North Korea. According to WPK rules, the Central Committee is elected by the party congress and the party conference can be conferred the right to renew its membership composition. In practice, the Central Committee has the ability to dismiss and appoint new members without consulting with the wider party at its own plenary sessions.
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Kim Yong Ju was a North Korean politician and the younger brother of Kim Il Sung, who ruled North Korea from 1948 to 1994. Under his brother's rule, Kim Yong Ju held key posts including Politburo member in the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) during the 1960s and early 1970s, but he fell out of favour in 1974 following a power struggle with Kim Jong Il. From 1998 until his death in 2021, he held the ceremonial position of Honorary Vice President of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA), North Korea's parliament.
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In North Korea, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), or simply the Politburo, formerly the Political Committee (1946–61), is the highest decision-making body in the ruling party between sessions of its Central Committee. Article 25 of the Party Charter stipulates that "The Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee and its Standing Committee organize and direct all party work on behalf of the party Central Committee between plenary meetings. The Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee shall meet at least once every month." The Politburo is elected by the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea.
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The 6th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea was elected by the 6th Congress on 14 October 1980, and remained in session until the election of the 7th Central Committee on 9 May 2016. The Central Committee composition was replenished by the 3rd WPK Conference. In between party congresses and specially convened conferences the Central Committee is the highest decision-making institution in the WPK and North Korea. The Central Committee is not a permanent institution and delegates day-to-day work to elected bodies, such as the Presidium, the Politburo, the Secretariat, the Central Military Commission and the Control Commission in the case of the 6th Central Committee. It convenes meetings, known as "Plenary Session of the [term] Central Committee", to discuss major policies. Only full members have the right to vote, but if a full member cannot attend a plenary session, the person's spot is taken over by an alternate. Plenary session can also be attended by non-members, such meetings are known as "Enlarged Plenary Session", to participate in the committee's discussions.
The history of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) encompasses the period from 1949 onwards.
The 5th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea took place from 2–13 November 1970.
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Officially, the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) – the ruling party of North Korea – is a communist party guided by Kimilsungism–Kimjongilism, a synthesis of the ideas of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. The party is committed to Juche, an ideology attributed to Kim Il Sung which promotes national independence and development through the efforts of the popular masses. Although Juche was originally presented as the Korean interpretation of Marxism–Leninism, the party now presents it as a freestanding philosophy. The WPK recognizes the ruling Kim family as the ultimate source of its political thought. The fourth party conference, held in 2012, amended the party rules to state that Kimilsungism–Kimjongilism was "the only guiding idea of the party". Under Kim Jong Il, who governed as chairman of the National Defence Commission, communism was steadily removed from party and state documents in favour of Songun, or military-first politics. The military, rather than the working class, was established as the base of political power. However, his successor Kim Jong Un reversed this position in 2021, replacing Songun with "people-first politics" as the party's political method and reasserting the party's commitment to communism.
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