4th Party Conference To Convene in “mid-April”

A poster issued in July 2010 for the 3rd Party Conference held 28 September 2010 which says:"Greet the conference of the Workers' Party of Korea as an auspicious event which will shine forever in the history of our party and country!" (Photo: KCNA)

KCNA reports that on 18 February (Saturday) the Korean Workers’ Party [KWP] Political Bureau publicized its decision to convene a 4th Party Conference (meeting of party representatives) in April.  It will be the key political event to occur around the 100th anniversary of Kim Il Sung’s birth on 15 April 2012.

The Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea on Feb. 18 issued the following decision on convening the WPK Conference:

The Party members, servicepersons and all other Korean people are now dynamically pushing forward the grand advance to glorify 2012 as a year of proud victory to be recorded in the annals of the country, single-mindedly united around the dear respected Kim Jong Un, cherishing the steadfast faith that leader Kim Jong Il will always be with them.

Kim Jong Il developed the WPK into the party of President Kim Il Sung and an invincible revolutionary party with his outstanding ideas and theories and extraordinary leadership and successfully led the Korean revolution with warm love for the country and its people, fervent energy and great dedication for over half a century, thus performing undying revolutionary feats in behalf of the Party, the revolution, the country and its people.

We are now facing honorable tasks to build a thriving socialist nation by firmly defending the revolutionary ideas and line and undying revolutionary feats of the President and Kim Jong Il and successfully materializing them without an inch of deflection under the leadership of Kim Jong Un, holding Kim Jong Il in high esteem at the head of the WPK and the revolution for all ages.

The Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee decides to convene the WPK Conference in mid-April Juche 101 (2012) to glorify the sacred revolutionary life and feats of Kim Jong Il for all ages and accomplish the Juche cause, the Songun revolutionary cause, rallied close around Kim Jong Un.

The last party conference was convened in Pyongyang on 28 September 2010 and was Kim Jong Un’s (Kim Cho’ng-u’n) major public debut.  At the 3rd Party Conference, KJU was elected a member of the Party Central Committee and Vice Chairman of the Party Central Military Commission [CMC].  The party charter was revised, a new class of central committee members and alternates (candidate members) were elected and a number of vacant positions on the CMC, Political Bureau and Secretariat were filled.

Kim Jong Un

Kim Jong Il’s death left vacant three senior party positions:  General-Secretary, Presidium Member of the Political Bureau and CMC Chairman.  KJU has been acclaimed with a number of honorific titles and appointed KPA Supreme Commander, but he is neither a member (or alternate) of the Political Bureau nor is he a party secretary.  He is, however, CMC Vice Chairman placing him next in line to become CMC Chairman.  If he is elected CMC Chairman in April, it is highly likely he will also be elected General Secretary, in accordance with the party charter revision in 2010 which made them concurrent positions.  As of February 2012, there were at least six (6) vacancies on the Political Bureau, one (1) in the Secretariat and one (1) on the CMC.  During the 4th Party Conference it is likely some of these vacancies will be filled.  The Political Bureau may also see some upward migration in its membership (i.e. alternate to full member).

Ko Yong Hui

The announcement on the 4th Party Conference occurred one day after the central leadership completed a series of events commemorating Kim Jong Il’s birthday.  If the upcoming party conference is intended to continue the advance of Kim Jong Un’s formal succession, then one possible clue might be found in a quiet renewal of promoting Ko Yong Hui as a national hero.  KCNA reported on 13 February (Monday) that “poets created many works with the approach of the Day of the Shining Star.”  Among the works published was an epic poem, “Comrade Kim Jong Il, Eternal Sun of Military-First Politics” which is about “great feats performed by him in turning the DPRK into a nuclear state, a military-first power.”  Ko is mentioned in the poem as “mother of Korea.”  Korea Times reported:

In an apparent move to burnish her name, the North’s main Rodong Sinmun referred to Ko Yong-hui, the senior Kim’s third wife, as the “Mother of Pyongyang” in an epic poem feting the autocrat Monday.

Analysts say the North has been cautious in mentioning Ko given her upbringing in Japan. She had been referred to as the “respected mother” in 2002 before efforts to elevate her were halted two years later after her death reportedly from cancer.

The North, which relies on a massive personality cult to justify its family rule, is thought to be emphasizing Kim Jong-un’s royal bloodline as it consolidates his power among the elite and over the population.

The junior Kim, thought to be in his late 20s, took power following his father’s death in December.

“There’s an all-out campaign underway to solidify Kim Jong-un’s political power, so it’s natural for the authorities to re-emphasize his mother,” said Park Young-ho, an analyst with the Korea Institute for National Unification. “The same was done for Kim Jong Il’s mother as he consolidated power.”

In 2003 Wolgan Choson obtained Korean People’s Army [KPA] indoctrination materials which referred to “the respected mother.”  The “mother” was also called “the General’s #1 aide” and described as someone who “assists the supreme commander from the close quarters of his body.”  This report also observed that Ko Yong Hui began appearing at Kim Jong Il’s guidance visits and inspections.  At the same time these documents surfaced in the ROK press, page space in Rodong Sinmun was increasingly reserved for essays carrying the by-line “Ko Yong Hui.”

Both the indoctrination and RS writing were early products to promote the KJI-Ko lineage (family) in hereditary succession.  Frequently cited among Pyongyang watchers as managing the Ko publicity effort within the KPA is Gen. Pak Jae Gyong, deputy (vice) director of the KPA General Political Department’s propaganda bureau.  Pak returned to a central leadership role days after KJI appointed his son supreme commander in October 2011.  Pak has attended many of Kim Jong Un’s visits to KPA units, and he has also appeared  quite prominently in footage in retrospective documentary films about, or extolling, KJI’s leadership.

Gen. Pak Jae Gyong attends the central report meeting for Kim Jong Il's birthday at 25 April House of Culture on 15 February 2012

DPRK trading corporation head Cha Ch'o'l-ma gives an interview in a Korean Central Television (KCTV) show aired on 18 February 2012 (Photo: KCTV-Yonhap)

Also linked to the early Ko Yong Hui publicity campaign was Ri Je Gang (Ri Che-kang), a senior deputy (vice) director of the KWP Organization Guidance Department and an aide to Kim Jong Il in the personal secretariat.  Ri died in an automobile accident in June 2010, prior to a major government personnel shuffle.  Ri’s son-in-law Cha Chol Ma was spotted on KCTV during KJI’s birthday.  Yonhap reports:

Cha Chol-ma, known as one of North Korea’s richest men, has been confirmed to be serving in a top position at the Mansudae Assembly Hall, the seat of the North’s legislative body, the Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA).

In a Saturday TV program on the late leader Kim Jong-il’s Feb. 16 birthday, Cha was briefly interviewed, saying that the Mansudae Assembly Hall was decorated with thousands of bouquets of flowers out of its workers’ respect for Kim Jong-il, who reportedly died of heart failure last December.

“All of the workers at the Mansudae Assembly Hall are deeply grieving the sudden demise of the great general Kim Jong-il,” Cha said in the interview carried by the Korean Central Broadcasting Station.

Cha, who formerly served at the foreign ministry and engaged in trade and commerce with China, is alleged to have earned more than US$10 million by monopolizing foreign currency earning businesses run by SPA’s standing committees. He is also said to have expanded his wealth and business knowledge while serving as a diplomat at the North’s embassies in China and Pakistan.

Cha is a son-in-law of the late Ri Je-gang, who died in a traffic accident in June 2010 after long serving as one of Kim Jong-il’s most trusted aides, triggering speculation that he had received a lot of help from Ri in the process of accumulating his fortune.

KJI Birthday Commemorated

Ku'msusan Memorial Palace was the setting of a meeting of the KPA and renaming ceremony on 16 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

On 16 February (Thursday) Kim Jong Un (Kim Cho’ng-u’n) and other members of the central leadership commemorated what would have been Kim Jong Il’s official 70th birthday at Ku’msusan Memorial Palace.  The main event was a renaming ceremony whereby Ku’msusan was renamed Palace of the Sun, in advance of displaying KJI’s remains once the preservation process is complete.  Speaking at the ceremony were SPA Presidium President Kim Yong Nam and Chief of the KPA General Staff Ri Yong Ho.  Kim publicized the decision to rename the palace, while Ri spoke about the political loyalty of the Korean People’s Army [KPA].   After the speeches, a cavalcade of MLRS, armored personnel carriers, towed missiles, KPA personnel and members of the Worker-Peasants’ Red Guard processed through Ku’msusan Plaza.

KCNA reports:

Kim Yong Nam, Choe Yong Rim, Ri Yong Ho, Kim Kyong Hui, Kim Yong Chun, Kim Jong Gak, senior party, state and army officials, commanders of the KPA services and arms, officials of the party, armed forces, power bodies, social organizations, ministries and national institutions, men and officers of the Korean People’s Army and the Korean People’s Internal Security Forces, officials in the fields of science, education, culture and arts, public health and media, persons of distinguished services and labor innovators also attended.

Present there on invitation were overseas Koreans including the delegation of the Koreans in Japan for commemorating the Day of the Shining Star and the chief of the Pyongyang mission of the Anti-Imperialist National Democratic Front, diplomatic envoys and representatives of international organizations and members of military attaches corps here.

They observed a moment’s silence for Kim Jong Il.

A joint decision of the Central Committee and the Central Military Commission of the Workers’ Party of Korea, the DPRK National Defence Commission, the Presidium of the DPRK Supreme People’s Assembly and the DPRK Cabinet was made public to rename the Kumsusan Memorial Palace the “Kumsusan Palace of the Sun”.

A ceremony of the service persons of the three services of the KPA followed.

All the participants paid highest respects to the portrait of smiling Generalissimo Kim Il Sung and the portrait of smiling Generalissimo Kim Jong Il, the founder and builder of the revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK.

A 21 gun-salute boomed amid the playing of “Song of General Kim Il Sung” and “Song of General Kim Jong Il”.

Chief of KPA General Staff Ri Yong Ho, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK, made an address.

He, reflecting the iron faith and will of the KPA, the army of the President and Kim Jong Il and the army of the Supreme Commander, pledged to share the destiny with the party forever even though the earth might break down, the sky fall and the land collapse.

Then the portrait of smiling Kim Jong Il entered the plaza, escorted by columns of colors.

Columns of the units of the three services of the KPA marched by, carrying flags of the Supreme Commander, the WPK and the military to the tune of music of a brass band.

Kim Jong Un held his hand to salute them.

The columns of multiple launch rocket system, missiles and armored cars passed through the plaza.

At the end of the march, he waved back to the enthusiastic, cheering masses.

A view of the rostrum in front of Ku'msusan Memorial Palace on 16 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

Political Bureau Presidium Member and Chief of the KPA General Staff, VMar Ri Yong Ho (5th L) delivers a keynote address at a meeting of the KPA service branches on 16 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

A BTR rolls through Ku'msusan Plaza at a meeting commemorating Kim Jong Il's birthday on 16 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

Prior to the KPA meeting and naming ceremony, KJU along with members of the central leadership and a variety of DPRK elites visited a portrait of KJI mounted on marble in one of Ku’msusan’s reception rooms.  Among the elites who queued up were the inaugural recipients of the Order of Kim Jong Il, including his widow Kim Ok.

Kim Jong Un stands in front a portrait of Kim Jong Il inside Ku'msusan Memorial Palace

A woman who resembles Kim Ok (R), KJI's last known wife and a manager at the National Defense Commission, looks at a portrait of KJI after bowing to the image with other DPRK elites on 16 February 2012

KCNA reports:

Accompanying him were Kim Yong Nam, Choe Yong Rim, Ri Yong Ho, Kim Kyong Hui, Kim Yong Chun, Kim Ki Nam, Choe Thae Bok, Yang Hyong Sop, Kang Sok Ju, Jang Song Thaek, Kim Jong Gak, Kim Yang Gon, Kim Yong Il, Pak To Chun, Choe Ryong Hae, Thae Jong Su, Kim Phyong Hae, Mun Kyong Dok, Ju Kyu Chang, U Tong Chuk and Kim Chang Sop, officials of the C.C. and the Central Military Commission of the WPK and the DPRK National Defence Commission, staff members of the KPA Supreme Command, commanding officers of KPA large-combined units, chief secretaries of the provincial committees of the WPK, and leading officials of ministries and national institutions.

The chief of the guards of honor of KPA three services and the Worker-Peasant Red Guards made a salute to the portrait of smiling Generalissimo Kim Jong Il.

Seen before the portrait was a floral basket in the joint name of the Central Committee and the Central Military Commission of the WPK, the DPRK National Defence Commission, the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly and the Cabinet of the DPRK.

Written on the ribbons of the floral basket were letters reading “The great leader Comrade Kim Jong Il is immortal”.

Kim Jong Un, together with senior party, state and military officials, paid deep respects to Kim Jong Il in humble reverence while looking up to his portrait.

 

An image of Kim Jong Il's office building is projected during this song performance at a concert commemorating his birthday (Photo: KCNA)

Kim Jong Un and the central leadership also attended a birthday concert, given by the U’nhasu Orchestra.  Yonhap reports:

The new leader attended an orchestra concert, apparently held on Friday, along with top members of the ruling elite, according to Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency.

“Kim Jong-un waved to the enthusiastically cheering audience. The audience observed a moment’s silence in memory of Kim Jong-il in the humblest reverence,” KCNA said.

“Its performers represented the unbounded yearning and reverence of the service personnel and the people for Kim Jong-il who laid an eternal foundation for the prosperity of the country and its people’s happiness, undergoing for decades all sorts of sufferings which nobody else in this world has ever experienced,” it said.

On Friday (17 February) members of the central leadership congregated at the Mokran House for “a splendid reception.”  Like the unveiling ceremony of the Kim equestrian statuary at Mansudae Art Studio, neither Kim Jong Un nor Kim Kyong Hui were reported to have attended this event.  Among the named banquet attendees were “staff members of the Political Bureau.”  The last known mention of Political Bureau staff was at a similar banquet commemorating the party’s official anniversary on or around 11 October 2011, which was the same time KJI was dictating his “behests.”

Present there were Kim Yong Nam, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and president of the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly of the DPRK, Choe Yong Rim, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and premier, Ri Yong Ho, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and chief of the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army (KPA), Kim Yong Chun, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., WPK and vice-chairman of the DPRK National Defence Commission and minister of the People’s Armed Forces, Kim Ki Nam and Choe Thae Bok, members of the Political Bureau and secretaries of the C. C., the WPK, Yang Hyong Sop, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., WPK and vice-president of the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly, Ri Yong Mu, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., WPK and vice-chairman of the DPRK National Defence Commission, O Kuk Ryol, member of the C.C., WPK and vice-chairman of the DPRK National Defence Commission, Kang Sok Ju, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., WPK and vice-premier of the Cabinet, Jang Song Thaek, alternate member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and vice-chairman of the National Defence Commission, Kim Jong Gak, alternate member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and first vice-director of the General Political Bureau of the KPA, Kim Yang Gon, Kim Yong Il, Pak To Chun and Choe Ryong Hae, alternate members of the Political Bureau and secretaries of the C.C., the WPK, Kim Rak Hui, alternate member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., WPK and vice-premier of the Cabinet, Thae Jong Su and Kim Phyong Hae, alternate members of the Political Bureau and secretaries of the C.C., WPK, Mun Kyong Dok, alternate member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the C.C., the WPK and chief secretary of the Pyongyang City Committee of the WPK, Ju Kyu Chang, alternate member of the Political Bureau and department director of the C.C., the WPK, U Tong Chuk and Kim Chang Sop, alternate members of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK, and staff members of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK, members of the C.C., the WPK, members of the Party Central Military Commission, leading officials of the NDC and armed forces organs, officials of ministries and national institutions, men and officers of the KPA and the Korean People’s Internal Security Forces and others.

Ri Yong Ho made a speech there.

He said it was the greatest honor of the service personnel and people of the DPRK and the great fortune of Kim Il Sung’s nation that they have lived and made revolution, holding Generalissimo Kim Jong Il in high esteem as the sun of their destiny and their father.

The army and people of the DPRK will always remember Generalissimo Kim Jong Il who performed the undying feats on behalf of the times and history as a human being, revolutionary and the people’s father, he noted, and continued:

The history of Kim Jong Il’s Songun revolutionary leadership is given steady continuity thanks to the dear respected Kim Jong Un.

The world will clearly see what historic miracles Songun Korea will perform under the leadership of Kim Jong Un after letting Kim Jong Il lie in state.

At the reception a performance was given by artistes of the Wangjaesan Art Troupe.

A large loyalty rally of DPRK students and youths was held at Kim Il Sung Stadium in Pyongyang on 14 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

Meanwhile, earlier this week, the Kim Il Sung Youth League and Korean Children’s Union conducted several events including initiation ceremonies, study tours and regional meetings.  On Tuesday (14 February), the KISYL held a mass loyalty rally for Kim Jong Un at KIS Stadium:

Speeches followed a report by Ri Yong Chol, first secretary of the Central Committee of the Kim Il Sung Socialist Youth League.

The reporter and speakers said Kim Jong Il was born in Mt. Paektu, a holy mountain of revolution, being possessed of all personalities and qualities as befitting a great man. He wisely led the army and people of the DPRK till the last moments of his life, thereby performing undying feats on behalf of the era and history, they added.

They recalled that the fatherly General strengthened the league into the ranks of vanguard going with the August name of President Kim Il Sung and wisely led it so that it can creditably fulfill its mission and role as reliable political reserves of the Party.

They called upon all youths to uphold Kim Jong Il as an eternal sun of Songun Korea for all ages and materialize his lifelong desire.

They vowed to take the lead in the drive for realizing the Workers’ Party of Korea’s strategy for the prosperity of the country upholding the flame of Hamnam, keeping in mind his priceless aphorism that youths are prime-movers who make the whole country alive.

They appealed to hold high the torch of revolution bequeathed by Kim Jong Il and be loyal to Kim Jong Un and accomplish the revolutionary cause of juche, the cause of songun revolution, loudly singing “Korean Youth March”.

Attending the meeting were Choe Thae Bok, Choe Ryong Hae, officials concerned and those of the youth league and youth and students here.

Similar meetings took place in each city and county of the DPRK.

Members of the Kim Il Sung Youth League at loyalty rally on 14 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

While senior officials attended the central report meeting for KJI’s birthday on Wednesday, earlier that day the Korean Children’s Union held its own national meeting at the Taekwando Hall in Mangyo’ngdae.  In 2011, some KCU-related events were held outside Ku’msusan Memorial Palace.

Attending the meeting were representatives of the KCU from all provinces, schoolchildren in Pyongyang and pupils joining it.

Present there on invitation were Choe Thae Bok, Yang Hyong Sop, Choe Ryong Hae, Mun Kyong Dok and officials concerned, officials of party organs and the youth league in

Pyongyang, war veterans and persons of merit.

Ri Yong Chol, first secretary of the C.C., the Kim Il Sung Socialist Youth League, in his report said that Kim Jong Il who always paid deep attention to the work for bringing up successors to the revolution led the KCU members to make long journeys for the songun revolution under the leadership of the party.

The reporter called on all KCU members to actively learn from the glorious childhood and youthhood of Kim Jong Il to study hard and sincerely take part in their organizational life and thus establish sense of organization and discipline to prepare themselves as pillars of songun Korea.

Then followed an admission ceremony of the KCU.

Led by Choe Ryong Hae, secretary of the C.C., the Workers’ Party of Korea, pupils admitting the KCU took an oath.

Officials, war veterans and persons of merit put red ties around their necks and pinned KCU badges on their chests.

Congratulatory speeches were made by Pak Chan Su, lecturer at the Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum, Pang Sung Son, principal of Pyongyang Secondary School No. 1, and Labor Hero and People’s Sportswoman Jang Kyong Ok.

The speakers told them to hold father Kim Jong Il in high esteem forever and become genuine KCU members intensely loyal to the dear respected Kim Jong Un.

Synchronized swimmers performing a routine at an exhibition titled "Yearning Will Last Forever" at Ch'angkwang Health Complex in central Pyongyang on 15 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

KJI Statue Unveiled as Birthday Events Begin

A bronze statue depicting Kim Jong Il (R) on horseback was unveiled during a ceremony at Mansudae Art Studio on 14 February 2012. According to NK Economy Watch, the Kim Il Sung (L) statue is preexisting (Photo: KCNA)

Members of the central leadership attend the unveiling ceremony. In this image (L-R) are: Gen. Kim Jong Gak; Jang Song Taek; Gen. O Kuk Ryol; VMar Ri Yong Mu; VMar Kim Yong Chun; VMar Ri Yong Ho; Kim Yong Nam; Choe Yong Rim; Choe Tae Bok; Yang Hyong Sop; Kang Sok Ju; Kim Yang Gon; Kim Yong Il; Ju Kyu Chang; Choe Ryong Hae; Ju Kyu Chang; Kim Rak Hui (Photo: KCNA)

In a key event marking the birthday of the recently deceased DPRK supreme leader Kim Jong Il, a bronze statue was unveiled on Tuesday (14 February) at Mansudae Art Studio in Pyongyang.

An honor guard representing the three service branches of the Korean People's Army delivers a floral basket to the unveiled statue of Kim Jong Il on 14 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

SPA Presidium President Kim Yong Nam delivers the keynote address at a ceremony unveiling a bronze statue of Kim Jong Il at Mansudae Art Studio on 14 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

A variety of events commemorating what is officially Kim Jong Il’s 70th birthday have been held throughout the DPRK.  More events will occur on or around 16 February (Thursday).  According to the official chronicles of the Korean Workers’ Party History Institute, KJI was born on 16 February 1942 in a log cabin near Mt. Paektu on the DPRK-China border while other accounts said that KJI was born in February 1941 at a Russian military base  Khabarovsk where his parents were stationed as members of the 88th Brigade under the Soviet Far East Command.  Since KJI’s death in 2011, the country has commemorated his birthday as the “Day of the Shining Star.”

In 2011 KJI joined central party, security and government leaders at a banquet.  In 2010 KJI attended to the reopening of the 8 February Vinalon Complex in South Hamgyo’ng, signed (or assented to) execution orders and personally informed the then-Cabinet Premier of his eventual dismissal.  A documentary film on KJI’s activities in that month later revealed that during February 2010 he also attended a synchronized swimming exhibition at Ch’angkwang Health Complex in central Pyongyang.  In February 2009, KJI was preoccupied with changing his military leadership and during that month Gen. O Kuk Ryol was appointed Vice Chairman of the National Defense Commission [NDC], Kim Yong Chun was appointed Minister of the People’s Armed Forces and Ri Yong Ho was appointed chief of the General Staff.  Also, according to several sources and accounts, on the sidelines of private family festivities Jang Song Taek asked KJI’s three sons for their views on succession.  

Daily NK, citing the rumor mill of the country’s forex workers, considers the possibility that a complete list of KJI’s “behests” from 8 October 2011 will be publicized.  The only reported KJI behest and bequest the DPRK has released was the appointment of Kim Jong Un (Kim Cho’ng-u’n) as Korean People’s Army [KPA] Supreme Commander, which occurred during a KWP Political Bureau meeting on 30 December.  DNK analyzes that a public reading of the late center’s behests may solidify the political power of Jang Song Taek and Kim Kyong Hui:

One such person, whom Daily NK met in Shenyang, explained, “They say that the General’s ‘last instructions’ will be publicly released on Gwangmyungsung Day,” adding, “I am sure it will say that ‘the people must be one with comrade Kim Jong Eun and open the doors to the strong and prosperous nation’.”

“The first priority for the ‘last instructions’ will be to gather around comrade Kim Jong Eun with one heart; second, to build a strong and prosperous nation, and last the reunification of the fatherland,” the source went on. “As in the past when the Suryeong passed away, the ‘leadership of the last instructions’ will carry on for some time.”

However, it is the role of Jang Sung Taek that is attracting more attention than whether or not the last instructions are made public, the source claimed.

“If the General’s ‘last instructions’ are revealed this time, Vice Chairman Jan Sung Taek’s position will become much stronger,” he said. “I am sure the main point of the contents of the General’s ‘last instructions’ is, ultimately, to support comrade Kim Jong Eun enthusiastically, but who in the Republic will do that expect Jang?”

The main foreign currency earning lines in China and Malaysia are all stocked with Jang Sung Taek’s people, sources claim. While North Korea has been solidifying Kim Jong Eun’s power domestically, among front line foreign currency earners it is said that the competition is actually over loyalty to Jang.

Such people are very powerful, the source claimed, explaining, “We have to go back to North Korea every six months to a year for ideological education if we leave the country for two years, but those under Jang Sung Taek have the authority to extend the period without return to two or three years.”

“There is even a growing trend among workers (under Jang Sung Taek) to bring their children with them when they go abroad”. It has been long practice for the North Korean regime to keep the children of diplomats and workers in North Korea, to ensure ongoing loyalty.

Coincidentally, it is not only Jang himself who wields great power in North Korea. His late older brother Jang Sung Woo’s second son Jang Yong Chul is the current North Korean Ambassador to Malaysia, a position he has held since 2010, and his first son is working for the Committee for the Promotion of Economic Cooperation. His son-in-law Jeon Young Jin was appointed North Korean Ambassador to Cuba on the 4th of last month.

Opening ceremony of the Paektusan Sports Cup held at the basketball gym on Friday (Photo: KCNA)

The festivities for KJI’s birthday got underway late last week as the General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea visited revolutionary historical sites which culminated in a loyalty oath ceremony near KJI’s official birthplace near Mt. Paektu.  KCNA reports:

They laid floral baskets and flowers before the statues of President Kim Il Sung at the Pochonbo Revolutionary Battle Site and on the shore of Lake Samji and the mosaic depicting the three commanders of Mt. Paektu in the Paektusan secret camp and paid high tribute to them.

They went round the then command post of the Pochonbo battle, the police post of the Japanese imperialists, the sub-county office, the Samjiyon grand monument, etc.

They held an oath-taking meeting in front of Kim Jong Il’s old home in the Paektusan secret camp.

They toured the Samjiyon county-seat, which has undergone dramatic change, and conducted various political and cultural activities during the period.

A display of postage stamps depicting KJI and Kim Il Sung over the years, part of an exhibition which opened at the Korea Stamp Exhibition on Friday, 10 February 2012 (Photo: KCNA)

On 9 February (Thursday), Party Secretary of Propaganda (Publicity) and Agitation Kim Ki Nam presided over two exhibition openings.  At Korea Stamp Exhibition, Kim launched a show of past and current commemorative stamps about KJI:

The Korean stamp show for commemorating the 70th birth anniversary of leader Kim Jong Il was opened with due ceremony at the Korean Stamp Exhibition today.

Seen at the exhibition are a stamp of the image of Kim Jong Il published for the first time in 1987 and stamps of the undying revolutionary exploits he performed in leading the Party, army and people along the road of sure victory.

There are also various stamps presented by Korean philatelists.

Present at the ceremony were Kim Ki Nam, secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea C.C., Sim Chol Ho, minister of Post and Telecommunications, officials concerned, creators, philatelists and working people.

Present on invitation were officials of foreign embassies here in charge of cultural and friendly relations.

At the end of the ceremony the participants went round the displayed stamps.

Photographs of Kim Jong Il at an exhibition at the People's Palace of Culture (Photo: KCNA)

At the People’s Palace of Culture, Kim launched the opening of an exhibition of photographs of KJI:

A national photo exhibition opened in the DPRK to commemorate the 70th birth anniversary of leader Kim Jong Il.

On display in its venue are at least 300 photos of the revolutionary career of Kim Jong Il.

Among them are pictures titled “The great leader Comrade Kim Jong Il declaring the programme of modeling the whole society on the juche idea”, “The great leader Comrade Kim Jong Il and the dear respected Kim Jong Un guiding the fire striking exercises of large combined unit of the Korean People’s Army” and “Kwangmyongsong-2 soaring up to fully display the national power of Songun Korea”.

“The dear respected Kim Jong Un participating in the farewell-bidding ceremony together with senior officials of party, state and armed forces organs,” “Kim Il Sung Square full of lamentations calling for the great General” and other pictures showing the days the greatest sorrow when people were in tears of blood at an unexpected loss of the father of the nation.

Members of the Democratic Women's Union of Korea attend a ceremony on 10 February 2012 at Oun Revolutionary Site on the outskirts of Pyongyang (Photo: KCNA)

On Friday (10 February) the Democratic Women’s Union of Korea held a loyalty oath event at the Oun Revolutionary Site in suburban Pyongyang.  Back in the city, KWP Secretary Choe Ryo’ng-hae presided over a loyalty oath event held by the Union of Agricultural Workers of Korea:

A meeting of agricultural workers took place in the plaza of the Party Founding Memorial Tower on Friday to pledge to accomplish the revolutionary cause of juche under the leadership of the dear respected Kim Jong Un true to the behests of leader Kim Jong Il.

At the meeting a reporter and speakers said Kim Jong Il performed exploits before the country, the people, the era and history by developing and enriching the revolutionary idea of President Kim Il Sung and leading the Korean revolution along the path of victory.

The revolutionary exploits of Kim Jong Il would shine forever as he created the new history of perpetuating the memory of the President and turned the socialist country into a political, ideological and military power with his original songun politics, they stressed.

They vowed to keep on the drive for the great and fresh victory of the Juche revolution. A poem of pledge was read out there.

Also the same day, a declamation contest was held as the People’s Palace of Culture, attended by Choe Tae Bok and Kim Ki Nam:

In an oratory titled “The great motto” Choe Myong Ju, department director of the Ministry of Food Procurement and Administration, impressively told the story that Kim Jong Il autographed a paper on supplying the people with fish on December 16 last year.

Pak Yong Sun, section chief of the Hoeyang County Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea in Kangwon Province, said in an excited tone that Kim Jong Il glorified his great life as a life that braved snowstorm.

In an oratory titled “Sun” Han Chong Su, vice-minister of Light Industry, praised Kim Jong Il as the great sun of mankind who recorded legends about loving care for the people with rare leadership ability and noble virtue.

Speakers included Jong Myong Ok, manageress of Pyongyang Department Store No. 1, Kim Ju Song, department director of Railways, and Choe Myong Ok, deputy secretary of the Primary Committee of the WPK of Changwang Health Complex. In their oratories made under the respective titled “Promise”, “The General and his journeys to mix with people,” “Road to the front and Changgwang Health Complex” they impressively said there were too many stories to tell about Kim Jong Il’s total dedication to the people.

On Saturday (11 February) SPA Presidium President Kim Yong Nam and DPRK Cabinet Premier Choe Yong Rim attended a screening of the latest Kim Family documentary film With Desire of the Leader:

The film deals with the facts that leader Kim Jong Il made an endless journey of patriotic devoted service to realize the desire of President Kim Il Sung for building a thriving nation.

It tells about the undying leadership feats of the peerlessly great man, who put the dignity and strength of songun Korea on the highest level with his iron will and superhuman energies while instilling into the mind of the army and people the firm faith that the President is always with us.

Through the film its viewers hardened their belief that Kim Jong Il is the peerlessly illustrious songun commander and patriot and benevolent father who had spent all his life on the train of field guidance for the people’s happiness, enduring his fatigue.

The annual exhibition of Kimjongilia flowers (Photo: KCNA)

On 12 February (Sunday), members of the central leadership converged on KJI’s birthplace for a large loyalty oath rally.  This has typically been a major event during KJI birthday week.  The Mt. Paketu-based event that was held in 2010 was a kind of debut for VMar Ri Yong Ho and, to a lesser extent, Gen. Kim Jong Gak, presiding over a significant national event.  KCNA reports:

A meeting to vow loyalty took place in the secret camp in Mt. Paektu, a holy land of revolution, on Sunday  on the occasion of the birth anniversary of leader Kim Jong Il, the Day of the Shining Star, the greatest holiday of the nation.

Attending the meeting were Ri Yong Ho, Kim Ki Nam, Choe Thae Bok, Kim Jong Gak, Pak To Chun, Choe Ryong Hae and officials of Party and armed forces organs and working people’s organizations, ministries and national institutions, service personnel of the Korean People’s Army and the Korean People’s Internal Security Forces and people from all walks of life.

The participants observed a moment’s silence in memory of Kim Jong Il.

Speeches were made there.

Vice Marshal Ri Yong Ho, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the Workers’ Party of Korea and chief of the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army, said that the birth of Kim Jong Il was the great jubilee and fortune of the nation which greeted the peerlessly songun sun and a worldwide event which promised the bright future of progressive mankind aspiring after independence.

Kim Jong Il made tireless efforts for increasing the military capability with the steadfast faith that the army guarantees the prosperity of the country and happiness of its people, he noted.

Kim Ki Nam, member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the C.C., the Workers’ Party of Korea, said that thanks to the wise guidance of Kim Jong Il, the WPK has developed into an invincible party and genuine mother party and guiding force of the songun politics and it is shedding its rays as a dignified and sovereign party of President Kim Il Sung.

He stressed the need to cherish the invariable faith that Kim Jong Il will always be with us and uphold him in high esteem for all ages and fully and unconditionally implement his last instructions.

Ri Yong Chol, first secretary of the C.C., the Kim Il Sung Socialist Youth League, said the youth marking the significant Day of the Shining Star in the sacred land of the revolution where the great sun of songun was born miss Kim Jong Il very much.

He stressed the need for all members of the young vanguard to firmly unite around the dear respected Kim Jong Un and accomplish the cause of the Juche revolution started in Mt. Paektu, true to the last instructions of Kim Jong Il.

Fireworks were displayed in the sky above the secret camp to present fantastic scenery in the deep forest at night. The participants broke into loud shouts of “hurrah!” watching them.

 

Military Parade Planned for National Holiday

Mirim Airport in east Pyongyang is reportedly the staging location of a military parade (Photo: Google image)

The Korean People’s Army [KPA] has begun gathering pieces of military equipment and personnel at Mirim Airport in east Pyongyang, in preparation for a large military parade or demonstration.  Tanks, armored vehicles and various munitions started arriving at the airport in December.  It is also believed that  factory showroom models of the KN-02 and other missiles will be towed during the parade.  Another indication of parade preparations might also be found in Kim Jong Un’s recent activities.  Jong Un, Jang Song Taek and other members of the central leadership were recently reported to have observed a parachute demonstration and air show, as well as a concert by the “Military Band of the KPA.”

While certain to take place on a national holiday, it is not clear (and there are conflicting reports) whether the parade will happen around the anniversary of Kim Jong Il’s official 70th birthday on 16 February 2012, or for the centennial celebrations of Kim Il Sung’s birthday on 15 April 2012.  For the 10 October 2010 military parade held to celebrate the 65th anniversary of the Korean Workers’ Party, the KPA began rehearsals and mobilized personnel and equipment to Mirim Airport in July, or three months before the parade was held.

JoongAng Ilbo reports:

“We’ve recently detected that North Korean soldiers are preparing for a large-scale military parade by mobilizing a massive number of troops, including reserve forces at Mirim Airport near Pyongyang,” the source said. “We assume that they will stage a military march on the birthday of Kim Jong-il.”

“We were informed that North Korea brought its newest battle tank Pokpung, armored vehicles, anti-aircraft guns and missiles [to the exercise venue],” the source added. “If that weaponry appears at the upcoming march, it will become its largest parade ever.”

Although North Korea conducts goose-stepping soldiers’ marches to mark major national holidays such as the birthday of founder Kim Il Sung, the anniversary of the army and the Workers’ Party, this is the first time a military parade would be held on Kim Jong-il’s birthday.

Sources said that North Korea is developing a new ground-to-ground missile, KN-06, and other ballistic missiles. It may unveil new weapons at the parade to fulfill its oft-stated promise that 2012 will mark the year of “strong and prosperous nation.” At the parade to mark the 65th anniversary of the Workers’ Party in 2010, the North showed off its Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missile, which has a reported range of 2,500 to 3,000 kilometers (1500 to 1864 miles).

In an image taken on 6 October 2010, tanks, vehicles and other pieces are gathered at Mirim Airport, four days ahead of a military parade held to commemorate the party's 65th anniversary (Photo: Google image)

Where Are You Tonight?

The DPRK-PRC border (yellow line) from Pyo'ktong County (Photo: Google image)

The county center of Pyo'ktong County, North P'yo'ngan Province (40 35' 23" N 125 19' 43"E) (Photo: Google image)

As 2011 draws to a close, several media reports have come out about DPRK citizens who are unaccounted for or difficult to locate.  On or around 20 November, eight (8) members of the Border Security Command’s 10th Brigade fled the DPRK for China.  During a routine shift change, two guard teams fled from Pyo’ktong County, North P’yo’ngan Province into the Kuandian Manchu Autonomous County, Liaoning Province.  Two of the guards were shot by other BSC guards during the escape.  Daily NK reports:

According to the source, the group of armed soldiers made their escape at around midnight. They were reportedly from the Byeokdong County in North Pyongan Province, which faces Kuandian County along the banks of the Yalu River.
It is still unclear whether the escapees clashed with Chinese soldiers during their escape. However, the rumor is that they paid off local soldiers to turn a blind eye, although there is also talk of some modest clashes.

The North Korean soldiers are believed to have belonged to a border guard brigade responsible for things like preventing defections and smuggling. The source says that the soldiers conspired to escape together in two teams during a guard change.

Usually during a night shift, one two-man team stands fifty meters apart on guard while another team of three or four patrols the area. There are no changeovers for those standing guard, but the patrol team switches once every two hours, meaning that the group defection probably took place while the patrol team was changing over.

According to the source, armed People’s Liberation Army personnel were dispatched to key locations around Kuandian County as soon as Chinese officials became aware of the incident, fearing the possibility of a shootout with the North Korean soldiers trying to escape. In particular, dozens of soldiers were placed at railway stations and other transit points to try and stop the escapees from trying to avoid detection and make their way further inland.

Armed Chinese soldiers could also be seen patrolling Dandong railway station and other areas as late as December 11th. This served to further increase tension in the area because of the ensuing ID checks, leading to incidences of people being unable to verify their identities being taken in. Chinese commuters were further inconvenienced by ticket inspections at two or three times their usual level.

For their part, the North Korean authorities are understood to have sent several dozen NSA agents directly to Dandong to work on apprehending the fugitives. Numbers of NSA agents have been particularly high in areas of large numbers of Koreans since the event. The authorities are trying to find the escapees on foot, searching Sanma Road (the ‘Korea-Town of Dandong’) as well as the Xinliu shopping district and development areas.

Immediately after the incident the jamming of electronic signals between China and Sinuiju appeared also to have been stepped up, with areas usually receiving adequate telephone reception constantly dropping out.

Ri Chun Hui finishes her report on Kim Jong Il's written interview with ITAR-TASS during the 19 October 2011 KCTV news broadcast (Photo: KCNA) news broadcast

Meanwhile, Japan’s Radiopress noticed that Ri Chun Hui (Ri Chun-hu’i) has not appeared on Korea Central TV’s news broadcasts in nearly two months.  Ri was last seen reading DPRK media’s account of Kim Jong Il’s interview with ITAR-TASS on 19 October.  Perhaps, she has remained behind the camera in the intervening weeks to allow more youthful broadcasters the chance to “gloriously inherit and develop the revolutionary tradition.”  Korea Real Time reports:

She speaks in an inimitable style that mixes a kind of breathy quality with whatever the news calls for – exuberance when talking about the dictator’s greatness and stentorian power when talking those awful governments in the U.S. or South Korea.

To an outsider, it’s a style that’s hard to take seriously, but it has earned Ms. Ri fans among the North Korean followers.

In recent days, news organizations in Japan that regularly monitor the North’s TV broadcasts say that Ms. Ri hasn’t been on the air since Oct. 19, when she read a statement her big boss Mr. Kim gave to Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency.

That’s a long stretch away from the nightly news in Pyongyang. And Mr. Kim has been busy during that time with his normal activities of attending concerts, visiting factories and giving the wave at military drills.

And in Mostar, Bosnia-Herzegovenia, Toru Tamakawa of Asahi Shimbun visits the local branch of the United World College.  Outside the students’ residence hall, Tamakawa may have encountered Kim Han Sol, the son of Kim Jong Nam and grandson of Kim Jong Il.  Asahi Japan Watch reports:

But when it comes to Kim Han Sol, everyone said, “We have been told not to say anything (about him).”

Then I felt I was being watched.

A short man with Asian features was watching me from behind a bus stop 20 meters away.

The man, with a crew cut and wearing a dark-brown jacket, was talking on a cellphone while watching me.

He was strange, so I decided to take a break somewhere and lose the man.

I stopped into a cafe and had coffee. After 15 minutes, the man had gone.

Whew.

I started walking again toward the dormitory.

Then somebody called to me from behind, “Are you a journalist?”

I turned and saw the man I had seen a while ago.

He fired more questions before I had answered his initial question.

“I am a journalist coming from South Korea. Are you coming from Japan? Which press? TV?”

He was smiling, but his eyes were not.

He was not carrying a camera, a notebook or a bag.

It was my turn to ask the questions.

“Which news agency do you belong to? Newspaper? Television?”

Without answering, the man suddenly ran toward the student dormitory.

Thereafter, I saw him many times around the school and the dormitory.

(Is he a security guard the North Korean authorities sent?)

(Or is he Kim Han Sol’s guardian?)

One thing was crystal clear–he was keeping an eye on the media.

The school dormitory was about a 30 minutes’ walk from the school.

The building has six stories and its exterior is painted a crisp blue and white.

I tried to talk with the dorm manager, but was told sharply, “No media are admitted.”

I waited outside the compound until it was almost night, but Kim Han Sol did not show up.

I decided to return the next morning.

It was still dark at 7 a.m. A young Asian-looking man wearing a blue jumper came out of the dormitory.

He was wearing black-framed glasses and had an earring in his left ear.

It was him, the youth whose picture had been posted on the Facebook social networking site.

His hair was black, unlike yellow as the Facebook photo showed.

“Hello, Mr. Han Sol,” I said to him in English.

No response at all.

He did not react when I pointed my camera at him, but simply kept walking without expression.

He seemed to be used to the media.

The youth believed to be Kim Han Sol did not utter a word all the way to school.

He was so confident and so aloof that it felt almost refreshing to be in his presence.

It was an odd feeling.

Kim Jong Il Kicks Off KPA Winter Training Cycle

Kim Jong Il is briefed prior to directing what DPRK media reported to be "combined tactical exercises" of KPA Large Combined Unit #630. Also in attendance is son and designated successor, Kim Jong Un (R), who holds the position vice-chairman of the Party Central Military Commission (Photo: KCNA-Yonhap)

DPRK media reports that Kim Jong Il supervised the “combined tactical exercises” of Korean People’s Army [KPA] large combined unit 630.  The accounts of the military exercises came amid the DPRK Ministry of Foreign Affairs [MOFA] saying the development of a light water reactor and low enriched uranium is “progressing apace” and also as an international aid conference began in the south.  KCNA reports:

After receiving a salute Kim Jong Il mounted the commanding post where he was briefed on the exercises and commanded the combined tactical exercises of the unit.

When the exercises started, a-match-for-a-hundred stalwart fighters stormed the enemy positions and carried out their duties under various situations, attacking and obliterating targets at a stroke.

The exercises strikingly demonstrated the firm determination of the servicepersons to mercilessly destroy provocateurs if they fire even a single bullet into the inviolable territory of the DPRK, and accomplish the historic cause of national reunification at any cost. They also showed that not a single enemy can survive the unpredictable counterattack of the revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK which are carrying forward the shining traditions of the anti-Japanese struggle.

Watching the high-level exercises to which the Juche-oriented war tactics are applied, Kim Jong Il expressed great satisfaction with the fact that soldiers have been fully prepared to timely foil any surprise invasion by enemies and defend the socialist homeland as firm as a rock.

He highly estimated their successful exercises.

He repeatedly expressed satisfaction with the fact that the commanding officers of the large combined unit are rounding off their combat preparations with high innovative insight to handle manifold situations while keeping themselves abreast of modern military science and technologies and modes of combat actions.

He praised the soldiers for stirring up the hot wind for intensive exercises, saying they are acquiring combat rules applicable to an actual war by conducting effective exercises away from formalism with the revolutionary determination and enthusiasm to unconditionally attain the remarkably high goal of the exercises.

The army is under obligation to defend the destiny of the country and the nation with arms, he said, calling for intensifying combat exercises and perfecting combat preparations, cherishing that nothing is more important than combat preparations for the army.

The socialist homeland is impregnable as dependable soldiers as those of the large combined unit stand guard over it, ready to creditably carry out any combat order given by the party and the country at a moment’s notice, he added.

It is essential to continue channeling big efforts into strengthening the KPA in order to accomplish generation after generation the revolutionary cause of Juche, the Songun revolutionary cause that was started in the thick forests of Mt. Paektu, he said. He urged soldiers to put spurs to increasing the military capabilities which represent the sovereignty of the country and the nation and state power, and thus increase the combat capabilities in every way so that a soldier can match a hundred enemies.

He then went round a company under KPA Unit 169 honored with the title of the O Jung Hup-led 7th Regiment.

Going round a bedroom, education room, mess hall and other places, he learned about the military service of the soldiers.

Very pleased with the excellent conditions for military service provided to the soldiers by the unit, he called on the commanding officers to consider it as their noble moral obligation to take care of soldiers’ life so that they can glorify their military service with feats without feeling any inconvenience.

On Tuesday (29 November), Korean Central Television [KCTV] aired a film of Kim Jong Il watching joint, live fire military exercises with other members of the central leadership during September, which was followed by a radio editorial reiterating the DPRK’s earlier trope of turning the south into “a sea of fire.”  Yonhap reports:

North Korea on Wednesday renewed its threat to turn South Korea’s presidential office into a “sea of fire,” once again stepping up its offensive against the Seoul government.

North Korea’s military first issued the warning last week in response to military exercises by the South near the inter-Korean maritime border. The drills were conducted to mark the first anniversary of the North’s Nov. 23 shelling of Yeonpyeong Island, in which four South Koreans were killed, but Pyongyang viewed them as a rehearsal for war against it.

“(South Korea) should understand clearly that our warning is not empty talk, and refrain from rash acts,” said the official Radio Pyongyang.

The report also repeated North Korean claims that the attack on Yeonpyeong was a justified response of self-defense to South Korea’s military exercises at that time.

Dutch Stamp Collector Detained in DPRK Gives Interview

Store front of Willem van der Bijl's stamp and coin shop on Zandelstraat in Utrecht (Photo: RTV Utrecht)

A Dutch citizen held by DPRK authorities during the summer of 2011 has given a media interview about his detention.  Willem van der Bijl, a Utrecht shop owner and stamp collector, was detained and interrogated by the north’s Ministry of State Security for nearly two weeks from 29 July to 12 August.  Van der Bijl told NRC Handelsblad that he was arrested on espionage charges and kept in a 2 m by 3 m (6 ft by 9 ft) cell, surrounded by four armed guards.  He was interrogated three times a day, at 90 minute intervals, by two DPRK officials.  When not being interrogated, Van der Bijl spent 15 hours per day sitting in the chair in his cell.  Radio Netherlands Worldwide has a gist of the interview in its daily review of the Dutch press:

Philatelist Willem van der Bijl spent two weeks in a North Korean cell. The authorities mistrusted his Korean contacts and his collection of souvenirs. Not to mention the surreptitious snaps of an old village on his laptop: “You are trying to convince your leaders that our country is poor!” he was told.

Mr Van der Bijl’s account of his ordeal confirms quite a few suspicions about life under the Communist dictatorship. “I was in a cell, two by three metres with only a bed and a hard chair. I had to sit on the chair for 15 hours a day. I was surrounded by four soldiers 24 hours a day. I’m a positive fellow but it’s no wonder I began to lose my mind.” Thankfully he did not suffer any physical violence and after copying out a nine-page confession, he was eventually released.

So what was he doing in North Korea in the first place? “I love the people there,” he says. “They are sweet and naive … I’m an inquisitive soul, always have been. And it’s a fascinating place.” He admits he’s addicted and itching to go back. But he sighs “my friends and family won’t let me.”

Van der Bijl traveled to the DPRK 24 times, since 1998.  He was presumed missing on or about 30 July 2011, when he was not his return flight to Holland.  His colleagues and neighbors presumed that he had been detained.  While he was under arrest, DPRK media published a short essay about elections to local power organs which was supposedly written by Van der Bijl and carried an image of him wearing a party lapel pin.

DPRK, PRC to “Strengthen” Military Cooperation

Kim Jong Il poses for a commemorative photograph with a senior Chinese PLA delegation on 17 November 2011 (Photo: KCNA-Yonhap)

Kim Jong Il held a meeting and hosted a reception for Li Jinai, director of the Chinese PLA’s General Political Department, and a senior delegation of PLA officers on 17 November at which the two sides “said they would strengthen military exchanges and cooperation.”  Xinhua reported:

China and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) have said they would strengthen military exchanges and cooperation.

The two sides vowed to do so during an official goodwill visit from Nov. 15 to 18 to the DPRK by a senior Chinese military delegation led by Director of the General Political Department of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Li Jinai.

During a meeting with Li, top DPRK leader Kim Jong Il said the military relationship is an important part of the ties between the two countries. He said he hoped the two militaries would continue to improve their ties so as to help consolidate and develop the China-DPRK friendship.

Li said the Chinese military, in accordance with the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, is willing to work with the DPRK in the new historic era to enhance understanding and mutual trust and strengthen practical exchanges. This would promote the all-round development of China-DPRK relations, which are neighborly and friendly, he said.

Li also met with some senior DPRK military officers. During the meetings, Li expounded China’s views on the current international and regional situations.

The Chinese official reiterated the Chinese government’s principles and stand on issues related to the Korean Peninsula, and expressed China’s willingness to make joint efforts with the DPRK to maintain regional peace and stability.

Kim Jong Il toasts with Li Jinai, member of the PRC's Central Military Commission and director of the PLA's General Political Department, during a dinner reception (Photo: KCNA)

KCNA reported:

The traditional Sino-DPRK friendship forged and cultivated by the leaders of the elder generation of the two countries have entered a new stage of development under the deep care of Hu Jintao and Kim Jong Il, he said.

In recent years there was a brisk exchange of high-ranking delegations between the two countries and important agreements were reached on developing the friendly and cooperative relations and bilateral exchange and cooperation in various fields including politics, economy and military affairs have registered steady and abundant achievements, he noted.

It is the steadfast policy of the party, government and army of China to put into practice the common understandings reached between the leaders of the two countries and boost the friendly and cooperative relations between the peoples of the two countries, between the armies, in particular, he added.

Kim Jong Il warmly welcomed the visit of the high-ranking military delegation of the CPLA to the DPRK and asked Li Jinai to pass his warm regards to the members of the collective leadership of the CPC including Hu Jintao and the fraternal army and people of China.

The armies of the two countries have played a positive role in developing the DPRK-China friendly relati ons in the past, he expressed the belief that there would be no change in the sense of revolutionary obligation and class principle between the armies and peoples of the two countries no matter how the situation may change in the future.

Li Jinai presented Kim Jong Il and Kim Jong Un with the gifts prepared by him with his best wishes.

Li Jinai viewing a guestbook at a visit to the Liberation Tower during his visit to the DPRK. Also in attendance is KPA General Pak Jae Gyong (2nd R) (Photo: KCNA)

The meeting was Kim Jong Il’s third reported interaction with a Chinese official in less than a month, following his meeting with the PRC Vice Premier on 24 October and a reception for the PRC Ambassador to the DPRK on 31 October.  Li arrived in Pyongyang on Tuesday (15 November).  During his stay Li visited several sights including the Kumsusan Memorial Hall and the Liberation Tower.  He also met with senior KPA officials including Gen. Kim Jong Gak, senior deputy (vice) director of the KPA General Political Department, and Gen. Pak Jae Gyong.  Li’s four-day visit to the DPRK occurred while PRC leadership litigated their posture in the South China Sea with other Asian leaders.  It also followed a visit to China by the Korean People’s Interior Forces from 8 to 12 November.  KPIF commander Col. Gen. Ri Tae Chol met Li on 11 November and the Chinese official previewed the message that would underscore his subsequent visit to the DPRK.  KCNA reported:

Li Jinai, director of the General Political Department of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, Friday underscored the need for China and the DPRK to boost bilateral exchange and cooperation and thus contribute to development of ties between the two countries and armies.

He said this at a friendly talk with the delegation of the Korean People’s Internal Security Forces led by Col. Gen. Ri Thae Chol in Beijing.

Li at the talk noted that the traditional China-DPRK friendly relations have steadily developed under the deep care of the top leaders of the two countries.

Commander of the Korean People's Interior (Internal Security) Forces, Col. Gen. Ri Thae Chol (L) during a meeting with Li Jinai on 11 November in Beijing

The PLA’s press also reported on Li and Ri’s meeting:

Li Jinai said that the traditional friendly bilateral relations between China and the DPRK have enjoyed constant consolidation and development for years through joint efforts of both countries under the great concerns of the leaders of the two countries. In the new historical period, the Chinese side is willing to work together with the DPRK side to further strengthen communication and coordination, and deepen exchanges and cooperation, so as to make due contributions to further developing the relations between the two countries and the two militaries, and maintaining regional and world peace, stability and prosperity.

Li Jinai spoke highly of the exchanges and cooperation between the Chinese People’s Armed Police Force (APF) and the Interior Force of the DPRK.

Ri Tae Chol said that the two militaries of the DPRK and China have been helping and supporting each other for a long time, and have established and developed friendly relationship between the two countries. The Interior Force of the DPRK hopes to further strengthen exchanges and cooperation with the Chinese APF, so as to make positive efforts to develop comprehensive relations between the two countries.

While Li and the PLA delegation were in Pyongyang, Chinese Vice President (and next President) Xi Jinping met a 100-member delegation of the Kim Il Sung Youth League, who arrived in Beijing earlier in the day on 17 November.

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (R, Front) meets with a youth delegation of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) led by DPRK's top youth official Ri Yong Chol in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 17, 2011. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (C, 1st row) poses for group photo during a meeting with a youth delegation of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) led by DPRK's top youth official Ri Yong Chol in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 17, 2011. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

Inside the Mansudae Apartments

Mansudae Street Apartment Complex

Kim Jong Il on a guidance tour of the Mansudae Street apartments in October 2009. (Photo: KCNA)

One accomplishment used in support of Kim Jong Un’s (Kim Cho’ng-u’n) hereditary succession is the construction of an apartment complex in Mansudae Street.  KJU’s contribution to the project has been implicitly underscored in official propaganda as part of a litany that includes land reclamation projects, CNC technology, vinalon and other economic projects.  In reports from Japanese media and discussions with individuals who’ve traveled to the DPRK and met with DPRK elites, KJU’s management of the project has been used to buttress his open-mindedness and flexible approach to problem solving (i.e. willingness to deliver bad news to the center, purchasing building materials from abroad).  GlobalVoices blogger Lee Yoo Eun links to a ROK citizens’ journalism site that features photographs of the interior of one of these apartments, from which the photos below were taken.  NK Economy Watch has written comprehensively about the Mansudae apartments here.

Stairwell and window in a building of the Mansudae Street apartment complex in central Pyongyang

A hot water heater and tub in the bathroom of a residential unit of the Mansudae Street apartment complex in central Pyongyang

A view of a sitting room in an occupied unit at Mansudae Street apartment complex in central Pyongyang

A view of a room in an occupied unit of Mansudae Street apartment complex. At the right is a calendar depicting Kim Jong Suk (Kim Cho'ng-suk), mother of Kim Jong Il and Kim Kyong Hui