The People “Behind the Throne” of the Hermit Kingdom

It looks like the long term awaited secretive conference at the highest level in the North Korean Workers’ Party will happen after all, and is scheduled for September 28. That is if something unexpected doesn’t happened like it did last time around, when the members expected to attend went back home.

Analysts consider that the delay was caused by the fact that the leaders of the Communist regime (probably the last one in the world if we consider that Cuba has embraced some capitalist principles and Transnistria is not a state) did not agree upon the most important topic of this gathering: the announcement of the next supreme leader of the country.

The nomination of Kim Jong-eun doesn’t seem to be such an easy thing to do not even for the “Dear Leader” of North Korea, because his son is a perfect no name in his country and because the top leaders in the country may demand that their voices be heard.

Who is in charge of North Korea anyway? Who is running one of the most brutal regimes in the world? The Christian Science Monitor, an international news organization, publishes a top of the five most influential men in North Korea. They rule NK now, and will go on ruling it even after Kim Jong-il is no more the president.

General Kim Kyok-sik

Kim Kyok-sik is in charge of the troops in the southwest of the country, is deemed a total loyalist and the mastermind behind the attack on the South Korean ship Cheonan, in March, which resulted in the death of 49 soldiers and froze the relations between the two states.

The general is considered one of the most trustworthy generals in the army and one of the youngest (although he is in his 60s). He seems to have been demoted to the job he now executes, and is expected to become more independent as soon a new leadership is installed. Kim may not support Jang Song-thaek.

Kim Jong-eun

The third son of the president, 27, is the most discrete figure at the top level of the Asian regime. No one in his country knows what he looks like, and abroad people have been guessing for a long time which picture is his.

He is known to have received an Western education in Switzerland, where he seems to have developed Western customs, like his father before him, who, while preaching anti-capitalism to the starving Koreans, enjoys all the luxury the West can provide (a common feature of the Communist leaders, showing that their ideology is a pathetic lie).

Kim Kyong-hui

She is the leader’s younger sister, married to the unofficial No. 2, Jang Song-taek. She is a strong contender for power. She met her husband in Moscow, where they studied together.

She is in charge of the light industry in the country, and a member of the central committee of the party. She is close to her brother, and is supposed to have contributed to the coming back in the spotlights of her husband.

Jang Song-taek

Considered the regent of Kim Jong-eun, if he comes to power, after his father passes on. Jang arose through the Workers’ Party and was an important figure until several years ago when he disappeared from the public life, only to make his come back after the demise of Kim’s wife, which, many think, was the cause of his low-profiled period, given that she was seeing him as a threat to the succession of Kim Jong-eun.

General O Kuk-ryol

Former air force commander, O Kuk-ryol is considered by many the second most powerful man in North Korea after Kim Jong-il himself.

He is 70 years old and has known Kim since they were young. Now he holds the office of head of the defense bureau of the Workers’ Party (looks like he, too, was demoted), which makes him a key figure in the expected conference.

These are the people “behind the throne” of North Korea. As anyone can see, they are, with one exception, members of the same Kim family, which means that whether Kim Jong-eun gets to be the successor or not, the power rests in the family. At least for the next generation.   

Under these circumstances, can anyone say that North Korea is not the “Hermit Kongdom“? Hardly. They have a dynasty, they are secluded from the rest of the world, and, which is the only thing that matters at the end of the day, they possess the nuclear power that could fall in very wrong hands, should the country fall into chaos after the leader’s demise.