Kim Yo Jong, Kim Jong Un's Kid Sister, is 'Feared,' 'Respected' Inside North Korea

[RKP5637]

https://www.thedailybeast.com/kim-yo-jong-kim-jong-uns-kid-sister-cuts-loose

SEOUL—As the world waits to see if North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is alive, dead, or somewhere in between at the age of 36, all eyes are turning to his little sister, 31-year-old Kim Yo Jong. She looks like the top contender to succeed him, but does she have what it takes to do that in a regime long characterized by extreme brutality?

She might well.

Kim Yo Jong’s rise within North Korea’s omnipotent Organization and Guidance Department makes her North Korea’s “No. 2” in the eyes of the Workers’ Party bureaucrats—and that makes her not only the most visible heir to Kim Jong Un’s throne but, already, a central figure of authority.

If, as some have reported, Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un is near death after a surgical procedure, Yo Jong may already have the power to fend off any challenges to her claim on leadership.

If Kim Jong Un Dies, His Younger Sister Is Primed to Step In ...

She makes the decisions on what’s important enough for big brother Kim Jong Un’s scrutiny, says Robert Collins, who’s spent more than 40 years analyzing North Korea.

Collins, author of a lengthy study of the agency at the center of power in the North, says Kim Yo Jong exercises such authority around the OGD as to force party officials “to both fear and respect her.” Evidence that she’s got the job if not the title of OGD first vice director, he says, is that “the North Korean media always mentions her with Party cadre who are serving at that level.”

[hlthe2b]

1. Can you imagine Trump finding he has to deal with a WOMAN leader (dictator) of NK?

[RKP5637]

3. He'll call in sick! n/t

[ansible]

2. What a bizarre government, it's practically a monarchy

[RKP5637]

4. Yep! tRump is envious. n/t

[unblock]

8. Frankly most monarchs didn't have as much control over their country

as the North Korean dictators have had over theirs.

Kings and queens are thought of as all powerful, but in practice they were constantly worrying about maintaining the right backing of lords and other powerful people in their realm.

There has to be some element of that in North Korea as well, but it certainly appears that power is unusually concentrated in the hands of the ruling family

[Me.]

5. So A DRagon Lady Will Now Rule?

[RKP5637]

6. ...

[sop]

7. Don't give Princess Ivanka any ideas.

[RKP5637]

17. OMG!!! n/t

[Takket]

9. he will bow down and capitulate to her just like he did her brother......

and drumpf will be suckered into giving them whatever they want as long as she sends him a "beautiful letter".

"Yes mister drumpf! we got rid of all our weapons! pay no attention to all the missile launches and radiation coming from our shores! it is fake news! we love drumpf, you are the best!"

[RKP5637]

10. I wonder, will he be tempted to grab her by her ...

[Blue Owl]

11. Yo Kim

It's gonna take some time for Donny to get over Jong -- those two shared a connection deeper than the deepest ocean, taller than the tallest mountain, vaster than the vastest desert...

[RKP5637]

12. Maybe he will go into hiding and sulk leaving the rest of us alone, and he

can tweet just his base.

[DonaldsRump]

13. I suspect a "Nasty Woman" will be in the cards... n/t

[RKP5637]

18. She won't put up with any of his sh**, I bet. n/t

[CanonRay]

14. Has there ever, in modern times, been a woman dictator?

Eva Peron, Imelda Marcos? I'm not sure they could be called that.

[Ex Lurker]

15. Elena Ceaucescu nt

[muriel_volestrangler]

24. Perhaps you're thinking of Isabel Peron, Juan's 3rd wife and widow, not Eva

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isabel_Mart%C3%ADnez_de_Per%C3%B3n

She was Juan's vice president, then became president on his death, for 2 years. She had links with the "Triple A" death squad, and came close to standing trial for it.

[soryang]

16. This is the Kingmaker in North Korea if there is a succession

Choe Ryong-Hae, Vice Chairman, President

As SPA president, Mr Choe is technically head of state, although real power in North Korea is wielded by Mr Kim and his immediate family.

Analysts say his appointment suggests a generational shift in the North's leadership, especially after the collapse of the Hanoi summit with Mr Trump in February.

Born in 1950, Mr Choe is considered Mr Kim's right-hand man – frequently referred to as the regime's "virtual number two official".

https://www.thenational.ae/world/asia/north-korea-appoints-choe-ryong-hae-as-president-1.848051

Kim Yo-jong derives most of her power from her brother Kim Jong-un. The other potential successor to Kim Jong-un is his uncle, Kim Pyong-il who is Kim Jong-il's brother. He returned from overseas after a lengthy diplomatic career as ambassador in Europe, where he was essentially in exile for decades. Kim Pyong-il is Kim Il-sung's son. Thae Yong Ho, did an analysis of Kim Pyong-il yesterday in which it was reported that he is under house arrest, since his return in November 2019, because he is a preferable contender for power among the current ruling elites, led by Vice Chairman Choe, who now in their sixties, went to the same schools he did and now serve in the top party positions. KIm Pyong-il always has been regarded as a potential threat to succession, but he has remained a modest public servant with a low political profile to survive. Thae Yong Ho met him overseas in a professional capacity three times according to his interview on Channel A News Top Ten, yesterday. Kim Pyong-il served as ambassador to Poland and Czech Republic in his later assignments. Thae, a North Korean defector from the DPRK embassy in London, was elected to the South Korean National Assembly April 25 from the upper crust Gangnam district is Seoul, as a United Future Party Candidate. (Thae Yong-ho changed his name just before the election for some reason, now it's Thae Ku-min)


(Source- Channel A News Top Ten, 4.24) Kim Il Sung (left); Kim Pyong-il (center); Thae Ku-min aka Thae Yong-ho (right)

Thae's assessment is that there could be a power struggle or purge in the event of Kim's demise, while the old guard clings to the past and regards Kim Yo-jong as too young and inexperienced to rule. Thae prefers that Kim Yo-jong succeed Kim Jong-un. The program depicted Kim Yo-jong as isolated in the top echelons of power in North Korea. Even a nominal succession by her to power would be subject to resistance under the surface by the older and more experienced cadre of party elites who allegedly identify with Kim Pyong-il. The scenario presented is the classic maneuvering that takes place around the royal family before succession during the Chosun dynasty.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Pyong-il

[RKP5637]

20. Thanks!!! n/t

[chowder66]

19. I'm sure Ivanka will step right up as an admirer.

[RKP5637]

21. Hmmmm ... she will probably see an opening for selling her product lines. n/t

[chowder66]

22. Yep, that too.

[LizBeth]

23. 36 needing a heart stint? Wow.