North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly in April revised the country's constitution, deleting the word "communism" as the country's guiding philosophy and replacing it with the "Songun" or military-first ideology and the "Juche" or self-sufficiency doctrine. It also included a clause guaranteeing "regard for and the protection of human rights." It is questionable just how significant the constitution is in a country that is governed by Kim Jong-il rather than a set of laws, but the constitutional changes may still reflect the beliefs and plans of North Korea's ruling clique.

Communism is an ideal state of society where socialism has progressed to a level where only the proletariat is left. That type of society never existed on earth, certainly not in the former Soviet Union, and will never exist either. North Korean society has deteriorated to the point where there is a huge gap between the living conditions of the ruling political and military classes and the starving masses. Those differences go way beyond the imbalances of the early stages of capitalism. Does the deletion of the word "communism" mean that North Korea has acknowledged this reality? That is highly unlikely.

North Korea kept the word "socialism." That is why some experts say the constitutional revision resembles moves in China to dilute the communist ideology before reform and opening of the economy. It is possible that North Korea's leadership wanted to ensure a certain degree of flexibility when it comes to the economy.

If it wants to follow in China's footsteps, the North would be better advised to give up its nuclear weapons program and gain the trust of the international community rather than revise its useless constitution. But it has done just the opposite by choosing the "Songun" ideology as its guiding principle, placing the military above all else. No country in the world would be willing to trust a country that seeks to turn itself into one vast military base.

There is no way that a country that places its military above all else can respect human rights even if it is stipulated in the constitution. The only way to look at the inclusion of the words "human rights," which North Korea hated so much, is that it is probably meant to appease international pressure. Whatever the reason, the international community should take a more aggressive line on the North Korean regime's human rights violations, so that it cannot treat its own people with impunity the way it is treating them now.