The purpose of this dissertation is to prove that the consolidation of dictatorial rule by Kim Il-Seong in North Korea occurred alongside with the De-Sovietization of North Korea. As such, the policies that were designed to further strengthen North Ko...
The purpose of this dissertation is to prove that the consolidation of dictatorial rule by Kim Il-Seong in North Korea occurred alongside with the De-Sovietization of North Korea. As such, the policies that were designed to further strengthen North Korea's nationalist tradition, the presidium of the Korean Labour Party’s decision in August 19, 1954 to publish newspaper "Cho Sso Chin-sun", and Kim Il-sung's crackdown on political oppositions in 1953 were reviewed. The Korean War in reality compromised North Korea's diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union and expanded China's influence on North Korean affairs.
After the armistice, North Korea's leader Kim Il-sung went on a purge suppressing opposition parties, including the Workers' Party of South Korea, to further strengthen his grip on power.
He also emphasized North Korea's nationalist tradition to replace the aspiration surrounding "Sovietism", which was rampant in his country.
This could be observed from his decision to discontinue the "Soviet Shinbo" newspaper, and replace it with "Cho-Sso ch'insŏn". After the sudden death of Stalin in 1953, Soviet diplomacy prioritized "peaceful coexistence" and began to criticize the cult-like worship of Stalin. This was not only an inconvenience for Kim Il-sung, who tried to adopt the Stalinist political system but also served as one of the reasons for accelerating North Korea's tendency to de-Sovietize.
Taking these factors into consideration, this paper focused on Kim Il-sung's strengthening of one-person rule, in accordance with the change in Soviet leadership and Soviet political identity. In addition, the trend of de-Sovietization was investigated, focusing on the closure of the "Soviet Shinbo" newspaper and its replacement with "Cho-Sso ch'insŏn." newspaper.