Kim Hyong Jik’s Idea of “Jiwon” (Aim High) and the Korean National Association
- 1 Director of History Research Institute, Seoul, Korea
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to examine the life and activities of Kim Hyong Jik—father of Kim Il Sung—and the guiding principle of“Jiwon”created by him to help lead the anti-Japanese liberation movement. Jiwon’ of Kim Hyong Jik who waged undaunted struggle for national liberation in spite of the hideous repression under the occupation of Japanese imperialists. Even today in the 21st century I put emphasis on Kim Hyong Jik’s“Jiwon”because this idea enables us to recover the identity of the Korean History.“Jiwon”helps us recover the identity of the Korean nation because at its core lies love for the country, nation and people, which has been the traditional spirit inherent to the Korean nation. Today the North and the South of Korea maintain different stands for their respective political systems and ideals. Nevertheless,Koreahas one and the same identity. That is the nationalist spirit inherent to the Korean nation. I hold we should keep in mind that“Jiwon”reflected this anti-Japanese nationalist spirit which identifies the Korean history. I deem it essential to recover this nationalist spirit in the history of division, in which the North and South have remained divided with different systems and ideals.Through the activities of the Korean National Association, Kim Hyong Jik’s“Jiwon”was not simply a theory for its own sake, but a practical crystallization in history. In view of his anti-Japanese revolutionary movement and his activities as a patriotic educationist, I deem it necessary to evaluate Kim Hyong Jik as a historical figure who put forward a historical idea and put it into reality.
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