by metatron 11 Replies latest jw friends
This follows other odd reports from other sources: that Un's sister is in charge, that the capital is locked down and that the number 2 man in North Korea is meeting with South Korean Reunification Officials.
Can we hope that this affront to human decency is now changing? Yes, I continue to hope....
metatron
Thanks for the heads up. Sounds hopeful. The little fat maniac was a loose canon with ICBMs. Now, I'll keep an eye out for developments.
North Korea does not have ICBMs.
They have tested them. They have long range missiles that can reach Japan. Nukes?
Very interesting , I will watch this space .
smiddy
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...OUTLAW
Interesting, I hope there will be big changes there because the people of NK live in horrible conditions with very little food and clean water.
Outlaw, that's hilarious. .
My mind is in a state of flux, suffering from attempts to interview Jesus regarding his real plan to govern Christian communities during his absence, so I'm not going to swallow this bait and spend a couple of hours typing a more detailed response to this claimed development.
but briefly:
1. There is a constant propaganda war between North Korea and South Korea, not to mention the 'black ops' (read, disinformation) departments of other players that maintain an interest in the region.
2. There is, in the west, a constant need for journals and thinktanks to maintain a commentary on certain 'hot' topics to demonstrate that they are viable and invaluable sources of information, or otherwise no one will bother to read them or heed them.
The basic trigger for this 'new development' is that KJU last made a public appearance in early September. So whether the reason for absence from public view, is a 'palace coup' by the old guard or pressure from a 'new guard,' is essentially unknown and everything said is likely to be an (informed?) guess.
So view this The Diplomat report in the light of my reminders:
Web-link: http://thediplomat.com/2014/10/kim-jong-uns-sister-takes-control-in-north-korea/
Kim Jong-Un's Sister Takes Control in North Korea
According to a new report by a Seoul think tank, Kim Jong-un’s younger sister is in charge during his absence.
Kim Yo-jong, the younger sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, might be leading the hermit kingdom instead of her brother, a recent report from Seoul-based think tank, North Korea Intellectuals Solidarity (NKIS) revealed.
According to NKIS on October 1, Kim Jong-un — who has failed to appear at official events since early September — is getting medical treatment at Bonghwa Clinic from both domestic and foreign medical teams. Meanwhile, in his absence, Kim Yo-jong is charged with handling important government decisions.
An unnamed source told NKIS that a decision to give Kim Jong-un extended medical treatment was made at a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea on September 6. The meeting was reportedly held at Kim Yo-jong’s suggestion.
As a result of the meeting, Pyongyang decided four things. First, to give special and extended medical treatment to Kim Jong-un in order to quickly restore his health. Second, all North Korean high level officials and party members should be responsible in following Kim’s previous orders. Third, the party and army should be on wartime-like alert while Kim Jong-un is out of commission. Lastly, all the important matters related to government administration should be reported to Kim Yo-jong, so that Kim Jong-un can concentrate on getting better.
Kim Yo-jong is the daughter of the former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and his wife, Kim Yong-hui. She was first spotted at a photo session for participants at the 3rd Conference of the Workers’ Party of Korea in September 2010, when she stood next to her father’s personal secretary.
She was officially mentioned for the first time on March 9, 2014, as she accompanied her brother in voting for the Supreme People’s Assembly. She was identified as a “senior official” of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea. She is widely seen as having taken over the role of her aunt, Kim Kyong-hui, the wife of the executed Jang Song-thaek. Kim Kyong-hui supported her elder brother Kim Jong-il during his rule.
“Some say Hwang Byong-so, director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People’s Army, may have assumed new No. 2 status, but given what has been confirmed this time, we can say Hwang is just a shadow, and Kim Yo-jong is the second-in-command of North Korea,” said Kim Heung-gwang, the head of NKIS.
Meanwhile, speculation over Kim Jong-un’s sustained absence continues unabated.
South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency reported, citing an unnamed source, that he is suffering from gout.
A Daily Mirror report said that Kim Jong-un is addicted to Swiss cheese, which may have contributed to his health problems.
Curtis Melvin, a researcher with the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University, told Foreign Policy that Kim Jong un spends much of his time at the family compounds in Wonsan and Kangdong. The family compound in Kangdong is where Kim Jong-il recovered from his stroke.
In addition, Free North Korea Radio (FNK) reported on September 29 that Kim hadsurgery on his ankle. The surgery was reportedly successful.
However, the South Korean government has refused to confirm that Kim is suffering from any health problem.
“I think it is hard to relate Kim’s absence to his health since there used to be a time when Kim disappeared from official events [for] over ten days,” said Lim Byeong-chul, a spokesman of the Ministry of Unification.
And ...
Source: http://thediplomat.com/2014/10/top-north-korean-officials-make-surprise-visit-to-south-korea/
Top North Korean Officials Make Surprise Visit to South Korea
The most senior North Korean delegation to visit South Korea since 2002 arrived in Incheon on Saturday.
The two Koreas shocked everyone on Saturday when a North Korean military delegation led by Hwang Pyong-so, Choe Ryong-hae, and Kim Yang-gon arrived in Incheon, South Korea on an unannounced trip.
Although the North Korean leadership structure is highly opaque, Hwang Pyong-so is widely believed to be the second highest ranking official after only Kim Jong-un. Officially, he is holds the titles of the director of the Korean People’s Army General Political Bureau (seen as the second highest military official after the supreme commander), vice chairman of the National Defense Commission, and first deputy director of the Workers’ Party of Korea’s (WPK) Organization and Guidance Department (OCD). Many North Korean defectors and foreign experts claim the OCD is the most powerful body within the DPRK.
Christopher Green, manager of International Affairs for Daily NK and co-editor of Sino-NK, tells The Diplomat that this is the first time North Korea’s presumptive number 2 has visited South Korea since Jang Song-taek in 2002. (Green, like many North Korean experts, did stress the ambiguity and impreciseness of labeling anyone North Korea’s No. 2.)
Although Hwang appears to be the most senior official in the delegation, Choe Ryong-hae and Kim Yang-gon are also among the most powerful men in the North Korean regime. In fact, Choe, a close military aide to Kim Jong-un’s father, was widely viewed as North Korea’s No. 2 following the purge of Jang Song-taek last December. However, this spring he was replaced by Hwang as director of the Korean People’s Army General Political Bureau. Then, last month, Hwang also replaced Choe as vice chairman of the National Defense Commission. He currently holds the titles of WPK secretary for Workers’ Organization and chairman of the State Physical Culture and Sports Commission. The North Korean regime may be hoping to solidify Hwang’s status as No. 2 with this trip.
Kim Yang-gon is the director of North Korea’s United Front Department, which is the body that handles relations with South Korea and implements many other aspects of the North’s South Korean policy. He was also part of the last senior North Korean delegation to visit South Korea in 2009.
The official purpose of the delegation’s visit is to attend the closing ceremonies of the 17th Asian Games. However, it seems unlikely that such a senior level North Korean delegation would be visiting South Korea unless they were needed for some activity that could not be entrusted to more junior officials. This would most likely be negotiating on important or sensitive issues, although some speculated they may have made the visit to deliver a secret message from Kim Jong-un to the South Korean government.
This latter view is bolstered by the fact that the delegation is expected to return home Saturday afternoon following the closing ceremonies, suggesting that no intense negotiations will take place. The three North Korean officials did meet with South Korean officials upon their arrival on Saturday morning, and attended a luncheon with South Korea’s Unification Minister, Ryoo Kihl-jae, and national security adviser, Kim Kwan-jin.
Their visit comes at a time when Kim Jong-un has not been seen publicly in a month and North Korea’s official media has said he is suffering from health problems.
Also being regarded as a source of information is a meeting, in the Netherlands in September, of former NK officials who have defected.
You can read the full report by Vice News at: https://news.vice.com/article/former-top-official-says-kim-jong-un-is-no-longer-in-control-of-north-korea
but here's an extract:
....the keynote address was given by Jang Jin-sung, formerly a key member of Kim Jong-il's propaganda machine. Included in Jang's speech was a surprising assertion: North Korea is in the midst of a civil war.
According to Jang — a former counterintelligence official and poet laureate under Kim Jong-il — members of the government's Organization and Guidance Department (OGD), a powerful group of officials that once reported only to Kim Jong-il, have stopped taking orders from his son, Kim Jong-un. The OGD, Jang says, has effectively taken control of the country, and a conflict is simmering between factions that want to maintain absolute control over the economy and others seeking to gain wealth through foreign trade and a slightly more open market.
"On one hand, it's people who want to maintain a regime monopoly," Jang told VICE News through a translator in an interview Thursday. "On the other hand, it's not like people are fighting against the regime, but in a policy sense they want to take advantage to get influence. It's not actually consciously civil war, but there are these two incompatible forces at play."
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