{"id":4603,"date":"2020-06-05T19:03:02","date_gmt":"2020-06-05T10:03:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.01.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/?p=4603"},"modified":"2020-06-17T11:58:28","modified_gmt":"2020-06-17T02:58:28","slug":"kimyojung","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.02.asiapress.org\/rimjin-gang\/2020\/06\/recommendations\/kimyojung\/","title":{"rendered":"Kim Yo-jung: Devoted Sister or Ambitious Second-in-Command? The Key to Kim Jong-un\u2019s Crisis Strategy for Maintaining Family Rule"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"

(Photo) Kim Jong-un greets Kim Yo-jung, welcoming her back from her trip to South Korea. Originally published by the Rodong Sinmun in February 2018.<\/p><\/div>\n

Rumors of Kim Jong-un\u2019s critical health condition, which spread around the world in late April, ended with the leader's reappearance on May 1. Along with the speculative reports on Kim Jong-un's health, there was much discussion in the media regarding the identity of the leader's potential successor, with Kim Yo-jung, Kim Jong-un's younger sister, receiving particular attention.<\/p>\n

To begin with, if Kim Jong-un were to suddenly die or become otherwise incapable of serving as leader, the top officials of the party and the military would step in to temporarily assume his duties. Ultimately, though, only Kim Yo-jung could be the one to inherit his supreme power. Before answering why this is the case, let's first look at the trajectory of Kim Yo-jung's career over the last 8 years, since her brother first came to power.<\/p>\n

\u25c6 Kim Yo-jung's upwards trajectory<\/h2>\n

According to the South Korean Ministry of Unification's \"2020 Informational Packet on North Korean Public Figures\" released on May 13, Kim Yo-jung was born in 1988. She was likely born in September, making her current age 31. (Though Kenji Fujimoto, who served as Kim Jong-il's personal chef, wrote in his book that she was born in 1987.) It is well known that her mother, Ko Yong-hee, was an Osaka-born Korean who returned to North Korea from Japan. Both Kim Yo-jung and her older brother, Kim Jong-un, are \"second generation returnees.\"<\/p>\n

\u30fbOn November 19, 2012, scenes of Kim Yo-jung and Kim Kyung-hee (Kim Jong-il's younger sister) riding white horses were aired on Korean Central TV, giving the impression of Kim Yo-jung being part of a royal family.<\/p>\n

\"\"

(Photo) Kim Yo-jung and Kim Kyung-hee on white horses. Originally broadcast by Korean Central TV in November 2012.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u30fbKim Yo-jung's name appeared during the election of representatives for the Supreme People's Assembly on March 9, 2014. Her title was announced as \"Chief Laborer of the Worker's Party Central Committee.\" In November of the same year, she was promoted, earning the title of Deputy Head of the Party Central Committee.<\/p>\n

\u30fbOn October 10, 2015, the 70th anniversary commemoration event for the founding of the Workers' Party was broadcast live, with Kim Yo-jung appearing prominently behind her older brother as he gave his speech.<\/p>\n

\u30fbIn May 2016, Kim Yo-jung was promoted to become a member of the Party Central Committee and, in 2017, she became a member of the Party Central Committee's Political Bureau, cementing her place among the top 30 most powerful members of the party's hierarchy.<\/p>\n

\u30fbKim Yo-jung visited South Korea as a member of a high-level delegation to the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics and met with President Moon Jae-in. The visit marked the first time a member of the Kim clan had stepped foot in South Korean territory since the Korean War.<\/p>\n

\"\"

(Photo) Kim Yo-jung visiting South Korea to attend the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. Photograph released by the South Korean presidential office in February 2018.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u30fbSince 2018, Kim Jong-un has conducted top-level summit diplomacy, with Kim Yo-jung accompanying her brother to the DMZ, Singapore, and Beijing for summit meetings with President Moon Jae-in, President Trump, and President Xi Jinping.<\/p>\n

\u30fbIn February 2019, after denuclearization talks between Kim Jong-un and President Trump in Hanoi ended in a breakdown, Kim Yo-jung's name was omitted from the list of candidates for the Political Bureau. However, her name was restored to the list on April 11, 2020.<\/p>\n

\u30fbIn 2020, two statements of the North Korean regime were given by Kim Yo-jung. The first statement came after the South Korean presidential office expressed strong regret over the North\u2019s missile test on March 3. Kim Yo-jung\u2019s statement lambasted South Korea\u2019s leadership, asking how they could \u201cconduct military training but tell North Korea it cannot.\u201d The statement went on to accuse the Blue House\u2019s behavior as \u201cno different from that of a 3 year-old child.\u201d In addition, Kim Yo-jung released a statement on March 22, commending President Trump for sending a personal letter to Kim Jong-un.
\nNext page :\u25c6 Does Kim Yo-jung want to be in the limelight? ...<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u25c6 Does Kim Yo-jung want to be in the limelight?<\/h2>\n

To summarize Kim Yo-jung's current position:
\n(1) She has been portrayed as a member of the royal family
\n(2) She has rapidly elevated her position in the Workers' Party
\n(3) She has imprinted her presence at home and abroad by visibly assisting Kim Jong-un
\n(4) She has released statements of the regime, demonstrating her power in the system<\/p>\n

Kim Yo-jung\u2019s portrayal to the domestic and international audience as a member of the Mt. Baekdu royal lineage is important as it establishes her as a de-facto \u201csecond-in-command\u201d within the system. It seems that she is not a figurehead but an actual power inside the regime, groomed for possible succession.<\/p>\n

Kim Yo-jung also seems to enjoy her exposure to the public through the many pictures and videos released by state media. Rather than being simply satisfied with a public image as a \u201cproud and diligent younger sister of Kim Jong-un\u201d though, she seems intent upon climbing the ranks within the regime.<\/p>\n

\"\"

(Photo) President Moon Jae-in and his wife are greeted by Kim Jong-un and his wife upon their arrival at Pyongyang Airport. Kim Yo-jung can be seen in the background, in the middle of the picture. Photograph originally published by the Pyongyang Joint Photography Foundation on September 18, 2018.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25c6 The \u201cPermanence and Purity\u201d of the Kim clan inscripted into the Supreme Code<\/h2>\n

The \u201cTen Great Principles for the Establishment of the Party\u2019s One Ideology System\u201d is the highest doctrine in North Korea, superseding both the Constitution and the Labor Party Code. The \u201cTen Great Principles\u201d continuously calls for absolute loyalty and obedience to the party
\n(meaning Kim Jong-un). All citizens are required to use the \u201cTen Great Principles\u201d as a guide
\nfor their daily life and are tested on its contents at weekly self-criticism meetings.<\/p>\n

\"\"

(Photo) An original copy of the \u201cTen Great Principles\u201d obtained by ASIAPRESS. It is 56 pages-long and is pocket-sized.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"

(Photo) The inner cover of the \u201cTen Great Principles.\u201d The books are published by the Workers\u2019 Party of Korea.<\/p><\/div>\n

The \u201cTen Great Principles\u201d was revised in June 2013, in line with the Kim Jong-un era. One of
\nthe sentences added with the revision reads, \u201cWe will maintain the prestige of our part and
\nrevolution through the Baekdu bloodline forever.\u201d Another reads, \u201cWe must adhere thoroughly
\nto this purity.\u201d In this supreme code, it is stipulated that there can be no leader outside of the
\nKim clan and that power will be passed on within the family forever.<\/p>\n

When Kim Jong-un first came to power, some of those among Pyongyang\u2019s political and military elite were viewed as a threat to his rule. As such, the clauses of the \u201cTen Great Principles\u201d were activated, resulting in a wave of deadly purges.
\nNext page :\u25c6 Placing Kim Yo-jung second in command is a crisis...<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u25c6 Placing Kim Yo-jung second in command is a crisis management strategy for keeping power in the family<\/h2>\n

In December 2013, Jang Song-taek, the husband of Kim Kyung-hee, Kim Jong-il\u2019s younger sister, was purged and executed. The reason given for his punishment was for committing \u201canti-revolutionary sectarian acts that hinder the establishment of the Party\u2019s One Ideology System\u201d and \u201can act of plotting to overthrow the state.\u201d Because Jang Song-taek was considered to be developing his own base of power, he was ultimately viewed as a threat to the dominance of the Kim clan and eliminated.<\/p>\n

Kim Jong-un, who was born in 1984, is said to have three children. His eldest son is likely to be about 10 years-old. Therefore, it will take at least another decade for the child to be old enough to begin the succession process. But, should Kim Jong-un die or be unable to serve in office before then, it is his younger sister and \u201csecond-in-command\u201d, Kim Yo-jung, who will manage the crisis and ensure the continued rule of the \u201cpure Baekdu bloodline.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"

(Photo) Kim Yo-jung accompanied her older brother for the first U.S.-North Korea summit in Singapore. She exchanged statements with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on June 12, 2018. Photograph originally released by Singapore\u2019s Ministry of Communications and Information.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u25c6 What are Kim Pyong-il's chances? Will sexism prevent the succession of Kim Yo-jung?<\/h2>\n

Some argue that the 66 year-old Kim Pyong-il, the half-brother of Kim Jong-il, could become the next successor. Last year, Kim Pyong-il returned to North Korea from the Czech Republic, where he was serving as ambassador. However, his return is almost certainly not an indication of an impending rise in power.<\/p>\n

Kim Pyong-il was born to Kim Il-sung and Kim Seong-ae, Kim Il-sung\u2019s second wife (thought to have been born in either 1925 or 1928). In the early 1970s, when Kim Seong-ae wielded a high degree of power through the Democratic Women's Alliance of Korea, her son was spotlighted as a potential candidate for future rule. However, after Kim Seong-ae lost in a power struggle with Kim Jong-il, Kim Pyong-il was effectively banished, given power only as an ambassador to several Eastern European countries from 1979. He retired from the Ambassador to the Czech Republic last year, finally returning to North Korea after an absence of 40 years.<\/p>\n

Although Kim Pyong-il looks similar to his father and is mentioned in some quarters as part of
\nthe \u201cBaekdu bloodline,\u201d he is not thought of as \u201cpure\u201d because he was born to a different
\nmother than Kim Jong-il and, is therefore, in a different lineage from Kim Jong-un. Also, if he was to be seen as gaining political support, he too would be purged for violating the \u201cParty\u2019s One Ideology System.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some suggest that it would be difficult for Kim Yo-jung to succeed given North Korea\u2019s male-dominated society. Having worked with over a 1,000 North Korean people, however, it seems that gender equality in North Korean society is taken much more seriously than in South Korean, Japanese, and Korean-Chinese communities. North Korea even has \u201cWomen Leadership\u201d meetings, although it must be said that Kim Yo-jung is greatly benefitted by the fact that she is the Kim clan\u2019s only current option. In order for North Korea to accept her as Kim Jong-un\u2019s \u201csecond-in-command\u201d and potential successor, it seems to have been necessary to give her much public exposure. (ISHIMARU Jiro)<\/p>\n

\n
\uff1cRelated Article\uff1e<\/div>\n