Matteo CarbonelliSecretary general,European Society for the Study of the Juche IdeaDPRK President Kim Il Sung was an outstanding leader, whose commitment and activity for independence of his country and for socialism are well known by all of us, and whose memory and teachings are very much alive not only in the Korean people but in the world progressive peoples. President Kim Il Sung was indeed an eminent thinker as well, authoring a new ideology and theory for realizing man’s independence and for building of a socialist society. All references made to Juche idea in the speeches by representatives from different regions testify the permanent validity and correctness of this ideology and theory.So I would like today to focus my speech on some particular aspects, starting from a question someone might ask, why should I be interested in a theory elaborated since many decades ago in a far country in Asia.The answer is simply because this theory clarified the ideology that has its validity in the different situations, precisely taking man as the starting point and placing him at the center of everything. In the Juche idea man is the master of everything and decides everything, meaning that, by his ideological consciousness and will, he is able to transform and make use of nature and modify existing situations and relations.This should be the main concern of any philosophical and social theory caring for human being.As man is a social being who lives in a social community, full expansion of his capacities can only be achieved in the social community he lives and makes activities, coordinating with the capacities of the other members in order to reach common objectives that can benefit each of them.The Juche idea, indeed, advocates the elimination of oppression, exploitation, injustice and aims to establish relationships of fairness, equality and solidarity, in order to achieve the true freedom and independence of the individuals in the freedom and independence of the social community to which they belong. This is because individuals only can be free and independent if their social community is free and independent.It can be said that the Juche idea is the people-centered idea, the idea of independence and socialism, believing in the strength of the popular masses and relying on them. This theory, as we know, elaborated by President Kim Il Sung on the basis of practice, over decades of concrete experiences of fight and governance, made it possible victoriously to lead the Korean people first to free themselves from the yoke of colonial domination and then to safeguard its independence from attacks of imperialism up to build a powerful self-defensive State, while developing an advanced socialist society.President Kim Il Sung stressed as for the opposite of those often divided in factions preaching the support or concessions by foreign powers.“Experience shows that in order to lead the revolution to victory, one must go among the masses of people and organize them, and solve all problems arising in the course of the revolution independently on one’s own responsibility in accord with the actual conditions, instead of relying on others.”“The masters of the revolutionary struggle are the masses of people, and only when they are organized and mobilized can they win the revolutionary struggle”.In The Path of the Korean Revolution, he opposed factionalism and flunkeyism, growing the revolutionary party from the bottom.The Juche idea shows new and original features, overcoming limitations of preceding theories based on determinism or over-emphasis on material and economic factors. The Juche idea that clarified that man is the master of everything and decides everything, surpasses Marxism-Leninism, showing a new viewpoint and attitude to the world, on the basis of man’s position and role as master of the world. Focusing on man and taking a man-centered attitude, the Juche idea made a new theory approaching the world from the viewpoint of interests of man.The Juche idea defines that man is, in essence, a social being with independence, creativity and consciousness and teaches also how to continue revolution and keep the power realizing the needs of the popular masses through a continuous ideological work.After liberation from the Japanese imperialism in 1945 and after defending the country from the aggression of the imperialist allied forces in 1953, President Kim Il Sung led the reconstruction of a new People’s Korea as a phoenix on the ashes and ruins at the amazing speed of winged horse Chollima. Everyone visiting Pyongyang and the DPRK sees, where a barbaric war had before razed everything to the ground, magnificent achievements of buildings and monuments in well-kept green spaces and sees an orderly, hard-working, motivated and self-confident society.Applying the Juche idea, President Kim Il Sung established an advanced socialist system centered on the popular masses and made sure that socialist Korea gives the people the most important benefits. In the DPRK, the universal free health care was ensured for everybody in 1953; in 1974 a decree on abolishing taxation was adopted and promalgated; education is completely free and houses are distributed gratis by the state; there is not unemployment, neither homelessness nor beggar.Through a constant effort to improve popular masses’ living standards and declaring The people are my God, President Kim Il Sung ensured that people were put first in everything; and equipped them with socialist Juche ideology to ensure that people were the first defenders of the established social system.Causes of collapse of the Eastern European socialist countries were scientifically analyzed in the light of the Juche idea by Leader Kim Jong Il, who invariably covered along the road of socialism by applying the Juche idea elaborated by President Kim Il Sung. Declaring “Do not expect any change from me!”, Leader Kim Jong Il called the Korean people and world peoples to defend and advance the cause of socialism.Presently the building of Juche-oriented powerful socialist country led by President Kim Il Sung and Leader Kim Jong Il is carried on under the leadership of General Secretary Kim Jong Un.General Secretary Kim Jong Un said.“The permanent strategy of our revolution and its final victory lie in marching straight along the road of independence, the road of Songun and the road of socialism, as indicated by President Kim Il Sung and General Kim Jong Il.”The Juche idea, elaborated by President Kim Il Sung, formulated and systematized by Leader Kim Jong Il as the most scientific and perfected revolutionary idea in the history of human thoughts and presently is being further developed and enriched by General Secretary Kim Jong Un, remains the road ensuring, with independence and socialism, the liberation from imperialist oppression and domination, the overcoming of capitalist exploitation and the building of a new society, establishing relations of social justice, mutual solidarity and prospering development for all countries.