|
North Korea CONSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK
The constitutions of North Korea have been patterned after
those of other communist states. The constitutional framework
delineates a highly centralized governmental system and the
relationship between the people and the state. On December 27,
1972, the Fifth Supreme People's Assembly ratified a new
constitution to replace the first constitution, promulgated in
1948. Innovations of the 1972 constitution included the
establishment of the positions of president and vice presidents
and a super-cabinet called the Central People's Committee (CPC).
The 1972 constitution was revised in April 1992, and ratified by
the Sixth Supreme People's Assembly. The South Korean press
published unofficial translations of the document in late 1992.
The revised constitution has 171 articles and seven chapters
(twenty-two more and four less, respectively, than the 1972
constitution). Among the more significant changes are the
elevation of chuch'e at the expense of Marxism-Leninism,
the removal of references to the expulsion of foreign troops, and
the addition of articles encouraging joint ventures, guaranteeing
the "legitimate rights and interests of foreigners," and
establishing a framework for expanded ties with capitalist
countries. More important, the new constitution provides a legal
framework for the 1991 appointment of Kim Jong Il as supreme
commander of the armed forces by removing the military from the
command of the president and by placing the military under the
control of the National Defense Commission, of which he is
chairman.
The eighteen articles of Chapter 1 deal with politics.
Article 1 defines North Korea as an independent socialist state
representing the interests of all the Korean people. Article 15
states that the DPRK defends the democratic, national rights of
overseas Koreans and their legitimate rights under international
law. Sovereignty emanates from four expressly mentioned social
groups: workers, peasants, soldiers, and working intellectuals.
State organs are organized on and operate on the principle of
democratic centralism. In a change from the previous
constitution, attaining "the complete victory of socialism in the
northern half" was to be accomplished through the execution of
the three revolutions of ideology, technology and culture, while
struggling to realize unification of the fatherland by following
the principles of independence, peaceful unification, and grand
national unity. Previously socialism was to have been
accomplished by driving out foreign forces on a countrywide scale
and by reunifying the country peacefully on a democratic basis.
Other articles in this chapter refer to the mass line, the
Ch'ongsan-ni Method
(or Ch'ongsan-ri--see Glossary)
and spirit,
and the Three Revolution Team Movement. The constitution states
that foreign policy and foreign activities are based on the
principles of independence, peace, and friendship. Diplomatic,
political, economic, and cultural relations are to be established
with all friendly countries based on the principles of complete
equality, independence, mutual respect, noninterference in each
other's internal affairs, and mutual benefit.
In Chapter 2, economic affairs are codified. The constitution
declares that the means of production are owned by state and
cooperative organizations. The text reiterates that natural
resources, major factories and enterprises, harbors, banks, and
transportation and telecommunications establishments are state
owned and that land, draft animals, farm implements, fishing
boats, buildings, and small- and medium-sized factories and
enterprises may be owned by cooperative organizations. Article 24
defines personal property as that for personal use by the working
people for the purpose of consumption and derived from the
"socialist distribution according to work done and from
additional benefits received from the state and society."
Benefits derived from supplementary pursuits, such as the small
garden plots of collectivized farmers, are considered personal
property; such benefits are protected by the state as private
property and are guaranteed by law as a right of inheritance. The
planned, national economy is directed and managed through the
Taean Work System
(see Glossary;
Planning
, ch. 3).
Culture, education, and public health are covered in Article 45 stipulates that the state develop a mandatory
eleven-year education system, including one year of preschool
education
(see Education
, ch. 2). Other articles state that
education is provided at no cost and that scholarships are
granted to students enrolled in colleges and professional
schools. Education in nurseries and kindergartens is also at the
state and society's expense. Article 56 notes that medical
service is universal and free
(see Public Health
, ch. 2). Medical
care and the right to education are also covered in Chapter 5
articles. Article 57 places environmental protection measures
before production; this emphasis is in line with the attention
given to preserving the natural environment and creating a
"cultural and sanitary" living and working environment by
preventing environmental pollution.
Chapter 5 extensively details the fundamental rights and
duties of citizens. Citizens over the age of seventeen may
exercise the right to vote and be elected to office regardless of
gender, race, occupation, length of residency, property status,
education, party affiliation, political views, and religion.
Citizens in the armed forces may vote or to be elected; insane
persons and those deprived by court decisions of the right to
vote do not have the right to vote and be elected. According to
Article 67, citizens have freedom of speech, publication,
assembly, demonstration, and association. Citizens also have the
right to work, and Article 70 stipulates that they work according
to their ability and are remunerated according to the quantity
and quality of work performed. Article 71 provides for a system
of working hours, holidays, paid leave, sanitoriums, and rest
homes funded by the state, as well as for cultural facilities.
Article 76 accords women equal social status and rights. Women
are also granted maternity leave and shortened working hours when
they have large families. Marriage and the family are protected
by the state.
Chapter 6, entitled "State Institutions," has eighty articles
and eight sections--more sections than any other chapter. The
chapter covers the Supreme People's Assembly, the president of
the DPRK, the National Defense Commission, the Central People's
Committee, the State Administration Council, the local people's
assemblies and people's committees, the local administrative and
economic committees, and the court and the procurator's office.
Chapter 7, which covers the national emblem, the flag, and
capital, describes the first two items, designates P'yongyang as
the capital, and names the national anthem. In a change from the
previous constitution, the 1992 revision mandates that "the
sacred mountain of the revolution"--Paektu-san--be added to the
national emblem. It is to stand above the existing symbols: a
hydroelectric power plant, the beaming light of a five-pointed
red star, ovally framed ears of rice bound with a red band, and
the inscription "Democratic People's Republic of Korea."
Data as of June 1993
|
