Worker-Peasant Red Guards
| Worker-Peasant Red Guards | |
|---|---|
| 로농적위군 | |
 Emblem of the Worker-Peasant Red Guards | |
| Founded | January 1959 |
| Country |  North Korea |
| Allegiance | Kim Jong Un[1] |
| Type | Paramilitarymilitia |
| Role | Civil Defense |
| Size | 5 million personnel |
| Colors | Front:
Back:  Regimental standard Banner used by militia units |
| Korean name | |
| Chosŏn'gŭl | 로농적위군 |
| Hancha | Lao nông xích vệ quân |
| Revised Romanization | Ronongjeogwigun |
| McCune–Reischauer | Ronongjŏgwigun |
TheWorker-Peasant Red Guards(WPRG;Korean:로농적위군), also translated asWorkers and Peasants' Red Militia(WPRM),[2]is aparamilitaryforce inNorth Korea.It is the largest civil defense force in North Korea. It is not only underState Affairs Commission(until 2016National Defence Commission) andMinistry of Defencecontrol, but is also attached to theWorkers' Party of Koreaunder its Military Leadership Department. It is thus responsible to theSupreme Leaderin his capacity asSupreme Commander of the Armed Forces.
Themilitiais organized on aprovincial/city/town/villagelevel, and structured on a brigade, battalion, company, and platoon basis. The militia maintains infantry small arms, with some mortars, field guns and anti-aircraft guns and even modernized older equipment such as multiple rocket launchers like theBM-13and olderUral D-62motorcycles, although some units are unarmed indicating status as logistics and medical units.[3]Its strength is estimated at 5 million personnel.[4]
History[edit]
The organization was established In order to make up for the shortage of troops as the Chinese troops that participated in the Korean War withdrew in April 1958, North Korea disbanded the Self-Defense Forces, previously under the command of the Ministry of Social Security, and on 14 January, 1959 the organization was formally established with workers, farmers, intellectuals, and students joining it, and had a force of 500,000 people.[5][6]At first, they were required to receive military training while working for a living, but in 1962, in accordance with the policy of arming the entire population, the organization was expanded to include men aged 18 to 45 and single women aged 18 to 35. In 1971, the applicable age for the Workers' and Peasants' Red Guards was extended to 50 years old, and all men and single women aged 17 to 60 who were not transferred to the prison guards were targeted for formation, and it continues to this day. They were also widely mobilized to help with reconstruction projects following the mass destruction that occurred during theKorean War.In September 1970, the North Korean government established theRed Youth Guardsas a youth wing of the unit. The name ‘Worker-Peasant Red Guards’ first appeared at the military parade commemorating the 65th anniversary of the founding of the Party on October 10, 2010, and thereafter North Korea began calling it the ‘Worker-Peasant Red Guards’.[7]
Equipment[edit]
During a parade in September 2023 elements of the force paraded in what appeared to be truck mounted 122mm rockets tubes disguised as civilian vehicles.[8]
See also[edit]
Other nations:
- Red Guards (Russia)(Soviet Union)
- China Militia(China)
- Combat Groups of the Working Class(East Germany)
- Workers' Militia(Hungarian People's Republic)
- Volunteer Reserve of the Citizens' Militia(Polish People’s Republic)
- People's Militias (Czechoslovakia)
- Patriotic Guards (Romania)
- Territorial Defence(SFR Yugoslavia)
- Bolivarian Militia of Venezuela
- Committees for the Defense of the Revolution(Cuba)
References[edit]
- ^"North Korean military takes oath of loyalty".www.enca.com.Archived fromthe originalon 17 September 2016.Retrieved25 October2017.
- ^Scalapino, Robert A.; Lee, Chong-sik (1972).Communism in Korea: The society.University of California press. p.948.ISBN9780520022744.
- ^Bermudez (2001), pg 4–5.
- ^Oh, Kongdan; Hassig, Ralph C. (2004).North Korea through the Looking Glass.Washington: Brookings Institution Press. p. 231.ISBN978-0-8157-9820-0.
- ^"労 nông xích vệ quân"(in Japanese).Uriminzokkiri.7 September 2023. Archived fromthe originalon 7 September 2023.Retrieved29 September2023.
- ^"Golden Jubilee of Worker-Peasant Red Guards Marked", KCNA, 13 January 2009
- ^Benjamin R. Young (17 September 2021)."Guns in one hand: Kim Jong Un's revitalization of the Worker-Peasant Red Guards".NK News.Retrieved29 September2023.
- ^Payne, Stetson; Rogoway, Tyler (9 September 2023)."North Korea Debuts Rocket Launchers That Appear As Civilian Trucks".The Drive.Retrieved10 September2023.
| Active forces | |
|---|---|
| Paramilitary and reserve forces | |
| Senior leadership | |
| History |
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