[Opinion] Pro-North United Front

The old generation has heard the term ‘united front’ so many times that it has become almost clichéd. The united front, a communist revolution methodology, refers to a temporal strategic alliance between organizations and classes that share a common goal. It first started right after the Russian Revolution when the Comintern (Communist International) attempted to join hands with the Social Democratic Party, due to the failure of the Communist Revolution in Europe. The National Democratic Front, established in 1946 by various leftist parties and socialist organizations, under a Chosun Communist Party initiative, was the first of its kind in South Korea. Meanwhile, North Korea has never abandoned its united front strategy because it hasn’t yet parted with forceful unification ambition.

"We have to continue our fight more vigorously to decisively bury the pro-American reactionary traitors and conservative forces during this year’s presidential elections,” said the “joint editorial" that appeared in official North Korean newspapers on New Year`s Day this year. The Peaceful Unification of the Fatherland (PUF), of the North Korean Workers` Party, implemented the “three-in-one strategy” after the Kim Dae-jung administration, by allying with the pro-North Korean administration and leftist groups. The strategy has been largely successful, as pro-North Korean groups are prevalent in our society today.

The Gyeongnam Progressive Alliance (GPA), comprising some 150 progressive groups – including the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and the National Federation of Farmers` Association, in South Gyeongsang Province – recently introduced the Principles in Constructing the United Front, in its senior staff education booklet. The text is an exact reproduction of propaganda found on the website of the “National Saving Front” – an organization under the PUF. It says that if a larger number of people participate in the front, the PUF will be more powerful and the solidarity of the middle masses, which account for a large portion, will be further strengthened while solidifying the alliance of the working class and the peasantry.

“(The controversial text) was copied from a unification-related website. We weren’t aware of the existence of the National Saving Front,” said an official of the GPA. Even if the remark is false, it proves that the organization is a hack-progressive group. When the battle with the enemy is over, the leading forces of a united front will fight against their allies in order to monopolize the proceeds of war. Pro-North Korean groups that blindly follow North Korean ideology must remember that they will eventually be the victims of another united front.

Kwon Soon-taek, Editorial Writer, maypole@donga.com