Kim Jong-nam
Encyclopedia
Kim Jong-nam (born May 10, 1971), is the eldest son of Kim Jong-Il
, ruler of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. From roughly 1998 to 2001, he was widely considered to be the heir-apparent to his father and the next leader of North Korea. Following a much-publicized botched attempt to secretly visit Japan
's Disneyland
in May 2001, he was thought to have fallen out of favor with his father. Kim Jong-nam's younger half-brother Kim Jong-un was named heir apparent in September 2010.
, to Song Hye-rim
, one of three women known to have had children with Kim Jong-il. Because Kim Jong-il aimed to keep his affair with Song a secret due to the disapproval of his father Kim Il-sung, he initially kept Jong-nam out of school, instead sending him to live with Song's older sister Song Hye-rang
, who tutored him at home.
Kim Jong-nam is reported to have a personality similar to that of his father, and has been described by his aunt as being "hot tempered, sensitive, and gifted in the arts." The same aunt also said in 2000 that Jong-nam "does not wish to succeed his father." Like Kim Jong-il, he is interested in film
: he has written scripts and short films since he was young. His father also created a small movie set for him to use.
According to the Japanese magazine Shukan Shincho, Kim has made several clandestine visits to Japan, starting as early as 1995. A book about the Kim family, Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader by Bradley K. Martin, reported that during the late 1990s, Kim Jong-nam became "a familiar figure" at a bathhouse
in Yoshiwara
, one of Tokyo
's red light districts.
industry. In January 2001 he accompanied his father to Shanghai
, where he had talks with Chinese officials on the IT industry.
), accompanied by two women and a four-year old boy identified as his son. He was traveling on a forged Dominican Republic passport
using a Chinese alias, Pang Xiong, which could mean "fat bear". Kim was reportedly wearing a white shirt and dark blazer along with sunglasses and a gold chain. After being detained for several days, he was deported, on the instructions of the Japanese government, to the People's Republic of China
. Kim apparently told his questioners that he was in Japan to visit Tokyo Disneyland
in Urayasu
, also near Tokyo. The incident caused Kim Jong-il to cancel a planned visit to China because of the embarrassment to both countries.
It is widely believed that Kim Jong-un, Kim Jong-nam′s youngest half-brother, is the new heir apparent. Kim Jong-il has rewarded loyal army officers with imported luxury cars. Since the loyalty of the Army is the real foundation of the Kim family's continuing hold on power in the DPRK, this would be a serious development for Kim Jong-nam's prospects. In late 2003 it was reported that Kim Jong-nam was living in China, lending strength to this belief.
In 2003, Hwang Jang-yop
, a former KWP secretary for international affairs who defected to South Korea in 1997, predicted that Kim Jong-nam had lost his chance: "An heir must be the child of a woman a king loves, and it is true that Kim Jong-il loves Koh Young-hee most. The fate of Kim Jong-nam is sealed."
Kim Jong-un was left in charge while his father was on a state visit to China. Outsider observers also believe that the North Korea′s sinking of a South Korean ship
in March 2010 was part of a byzantine
attempt to secure succession for the youngest Kim.
on February 1, 2007, that Kim Jong-nam had been living incognito with his family in Macau
, for some three years, and that this was a cause of some embarrassment to both the Macau and Chinese governments.
South Korean television and the South China Morning Post reported in 2007 that Kim Jong-nam had a Portuguese passport. However, Portuguese authorities and the Portuguese consul in Macau, Pedro Moitinho de Almeida, stated that if "If such a document indeed exists, it is certainly a forgery".
In August 2007 it was reported that Kim Jong-nam had returned to the DPRK from China and had begun working at a key agency of the ruling Workers' Party, fueling speculation that the rift between Kim Jong-nam and his father had at least partially mended and that Kim Jong-nam was being groomed as a potential successor. It was verified later on that this was a rumor and that Kim Jong-nam is still staying in Beijing and Macau as before while travelling to Austria and France (for medical reasons) early November 2007 where he gave a short interview to a Japanese TV channel after going to Moscow.
In January 2009, Kim said he had "no interest" in taking power in North Korea after his father, stating that it is only for him to decide.
In June 2010, Kim gave a brief interview to the Associated Press
in Macau
while waiting for a hotel elevator. He told the reporter that he had "no plans" to defect to Europe
, as the press had recently rumored. Kim Jong-nam lived in an apartment on the southern tip of Macau's Coloane Island until 2007. An anonymous South Korean official reported in October 2010 that Jong-nam had not lived in Macau for "months", and now shuttles between China and "another country."
In late September 2010, his younger half-brother Kim Jong-un was made heir-apparent.
reports that Kim Jong-nam has two wives
, at least one mistress
, and several children. His first wife Shin Jong-hui (born c.
1980) and their son Kum-sol (born c. 1996) live at a home called Dragon Villa on the northern outskirts of Beijing
. His second wife Lee Hye-kyong (born c. 1970), their son Han-sol (born c. 1995) and their daughter Sol-hui (born c. 1998) live in a modest 12th story apartment building in Macau; Jong-nam's mistress, former Air Koryo
flight attendant
So Yong-la (born c. 1980), also lives in Macau. Han-sol has been linked to accounts on online social networks. In 2011 he enrolled in the United World College in Mostar
, Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Kim Jong-il
Kim Jong-il, also written as Kim Jong Il, birth name Yuri Irsenovich Kim born 16 February 1941 or 16 February 1942 , is the Supreme Leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea...
, ruler of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. From roughly 1998 to 2001, he was widely considered to be the heir-apparent to his father and the next leader of North Korea. Following a much-publicized botched attempt to secretly visit Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
's Disneyland
Tokyo Disneyland
is a 115 acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, near Tokyo. Its main gate is directly adjacent to both Maihama Station and Tokyo Disneyland Station. It was the first Disney park to be built outside of the United States and opened on April 15, 1983...
in May 2001, he was thought to have fallen out of favor with his father. Kim Jong-nam's younger half-brother Kim Jong-un was named heir apparent in September 2010.
Early life
Kim was born in PyongyangPyongyang
Pyongyang is the capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea, and the largest city in the country. Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River and, according to preliminary results from the 2008 population census, has a population of 3,255,388. The city was...
, to Song Hye-rim
Song Hye-rim
Song Hye-rim was a North Korean actress and one-time favored mistress of Kim Jong-il. She was born in present-day South Korea, in Changnyeong, South Gyeongsang.-Biography:...
, one of three women known to have had children with Kim Jong-il. Because Kim Jong-il aimed to keep his affair with Song a secret due to the disapproval of his father Kim Il-sung, he initially kept Jong-nam out of school, instead sending him to live with Song's older sister Song Hye-rang
Song Hye-rang
Song Hye-rang is a North Korean defector and author. Her father was a wealthy South Korean landowner who moved to the north for political reasons, while her mother was an editor of the official North Korean newspaper Rodong Shinmun...
, who tutored him at home.
Kim Jong-nam is reported to have a personality similar to that of his father, and has been described by his aunt as being "hot tempered, sensitive, and gifted in the arts." The same aunt also said in 2000 that Jong-nam "does not wish to succeed his father." Like Kim Jong-il, he is interested in film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
: he has written scripts and short films since he was young. His father also created a small movie set for him to use.
According to the Japanese magazine Shukan Shincho, Kim has made several clandestine visits to Japan, starting as early as 1995. A book about the Kim family, Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader by Bradley K. Martin, reported that during the late 1990s, Kim Jong-nam became "a familiar figure" at a bathhouse
Bathhouse
Bathhouse may refer to* Public bathing, historical public baths* Gay bathhouse, a place where males, typically homosexuals, go to have sex with other customers...
in Yoshiwara
Yoshiwara
Yoshiwara was a famous Akasen district in Edo, present-day Tōkyō, Japan.In the early 17th century, there was widespread male and female prostitution throughout the cities of Kyoto, Edo, and Osaka. To counter this, an order of Tokugawa Hidetada of the Tokugawa shogunate restricted prostitution to...
, one of Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
's red light districts.
1998–2001: Time as heir apparent
In 1998 Kim was appointed to a senior position in the Ministry of Public Security, the DPRK security apparatus, indicating that he was being promoted as a future leader. He was also reported to have been appointed head of the DPRK Computer Committee, in charge of developing an information technologyInformation technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
industry. In January 2001 he accompanied his father to Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, where he had talks with Chinese officials on the IT industry.
2001 Tokyo Disneyland incident
In May 2001, Kim was arrested on arrival at New Tokyo International Airport (now Narita International AirportNarita International Airport
is an international airport serving the Greater Tokyo Area of Japan. It is located east of Tokyo Station and east-southeast of Narita Station in the city of Narita, and the adjacent town of Shibayama....
), accompanied by two women and a four-year old boy identified as his son. He was traveling on a forged Dominican Republic passport
Dominican Republic passport
Dominican Republic passports are issued to citizens of the Dominican Republic to travel outside of the country.-See also:*List of passports*Visa-free countries...
using a Chinese alias, Pang Xiong, which could mean "fat bear". Kim was reportedly wearing a white shirt and dark blazer along with sunglasses and a gold chain. After being detained for several days, he was deported, on the instructions of the Japanese government, to the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
. Kim apparently told his questioners that he was in Japan to visit Tokyo Disneyland
Tokyo Disney Resort
is a theme park and vacation resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, just east of Tokyo. It is owned and operated by the Oriental Land Company with a license from The Walt Disney Company. The resort opened on April 15, 1983, as a single theme park , but developed into a resort with two theme...
in Urayasu
Urayasu, Chiba
is a city located in the far western corner of northern Chiba Prefecture, Japan. As of February 2011, the city had an estimated population of 164,822 and a population density of 9530 persons per km²...
, also near Tokyo. The incident caused Kim Jong-il to cancel a planned visit to China because of the embarrassment to both countries.
2001–2005: Loss of favor
Until the Tokyo incident, Kim Jong-nam was expected to become leader of the country after his father. In February 2003, the DPRK People's Army began a propaganda campaign under the slogan "The Respected Mother is the Most Faithful and Loyal Subject to the Dear Leader Comrade Supreme Commander." Since the "Respected Mother" was described as "[devoting] herself to the personal safety of the comrade supreme commander," and "[assisting] the comrade supreme commander nearest to his body," it is assumed that the "Respected Mother" is Ko Young-hee, and that the campaign is designed to promote Kim Jong-chul or Kim Jong-un, her sons. (A similar campaign was launched in praise of Kim Jong Il's mother during the later years of Kim Il-Sung's life.)It is widely believed that Kim Jong-un, Kim Jong-nam′s youngest half-brother, is the new heir apparent. Kim Jong-il has rewarded loyal army officers with imported luxury cars. Since the loyalty of the Army is the real foundation of the Kim family's continuing hold on power in the DPRK, this would be a serious development for Kim Jong-nam's prospects. In late 2003 it was reported that Kim Jong-nam was living in China, lending strength to this belief.
In 2003, Hwang Jang-yop
Hwang Jang-yop
Hwang Jang-yop was a major politician in North Korea who defected to South Korea in 1997, making him to date the highest-ranking defector from the isolated state. He was largely responsible for crafting the Juche Idea, North Korea's official state ideology.-Early life and career:Hwang was born in...
, a former KWP secretary for international affairs who defected to South Korea in 1997, predicted that Kim Jong-nam had lost his chance: "An heir must be the child of a woman a king loves, and it is true that Kim Jong-il loves Koh Young-hee most. The fate of Kim Jong-nam is sealed."
Kim Jong-un was left in charge while his father was on a state visit to China. Outsider observers also believe that the North Korea′s sinking of a South Korean ship
ROKS Cheonan sinking
The ROKS Cheonan sinking occurred on 26 March 2010, when the Cheonan, a South Korean Navy ship carrying 104 personnel, sank off the country's west coast near Baengnyeong Island in the Yellow Sea, killing 46 seamen...
in March 2010 was part of a byzantine
Byzantinism
Byzantinism or Byzantism is a term used in political science and philosophy to denote the political system and culture of the Byzantine Empire, and its spiritual successors, in particular, the Balkan states, the Ottoman Empire and Russia. The term byzantinism itself was coined in the 19th century...
attempt to secure succession for the youngest Kim.
2005–2010: Rise of Kim Jong-un
It was reported in the South China Morning PostSouth China Morning Post
The South China Morning Post , together with its Sunday edition, the Sunday Morning Post, is an English-language Hong Kong newspaper, published by the SCMP Group with a circulation of 104,000....
on February 1, 2007, that Kim Jong-nam had been living incognito with his family in Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
, for some three years, and that this was a cause of some embarrassment to both the Macau and Chinese governments.
South Korean television and the South China Morning Post reported in 2007 that Kim Jong-nam had a Portuguese passport. However, Portuguese authorities and the Portuguese consul in Macau, Pedro Moitinho de Almeida, stated that if "If such a document indeed exists, it is certainly a forgery".
In August 2007 it was reported that Kim Jong-nam had returned to the DPRK from China and had begun working at a key agency of the ruling Workers' Party, fueling speculation that the rift between Kim Jong-nam and his father had at least partially mended and that Kim Jong-nam was being groomed as a potential successor. It was verified later on that this was a rumor and that Kim Jong-nam is still staying in Beijing and Macau as before while travelling to Austria and France (for medical reasons) early November 2007 where he gave a short interview to a Japanese TV channel after going to Moscow.
In January 2009, Kim said he had "no interest" in taking power in North Korea after his father, stating that it is only for him to decide.
In June 2010, Kim gave a brief interview to the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
in Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
while waiting for a hotel elevator. He told the reporter that he had "no plans" to defect to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, as the press had recently rumored. Kim Jong-nam lived in an apartment on the southern tip of Macau's Coloane Island until 2007. An anonymous South Korean official reported in October 2010 that Jong-nam had not lived in Macau for "months", and now shuttles between China and "another country."
In late September 2010, his younger half-brother Kim Jong-un was made heir-apparent.
Personal life
The South Korean newspaper The Chosun IlboThe Chosun Ilbo
The Chosun Ilbo is one of the major newspapers in South Korea. With a daily circulation of over 2,200,000, the Chosun Ilbo has undertaken annual inspections since Audit Bureau of Circulations was established in 1993...
reports that Kim Jong-nam has two wives
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
, at least one mistress
Mistress (lover)
A mistress is a long-term female lover and companion who is not married to her partner; the term is used especially when her partner is married. The relationship generally is stable and at least semi-permanent; however, the couple does not live together openly. Also the relationship is usually,...
, and several children. His first wife Shin Jong-hui (born c.
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1980) and their son Kum-sol (born c. 1996) live at a home called Dragon Villa on the northern outskirts of Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
. His second wife Lee Hye-kyong (born c. 1970), their son Han-sol (born c. 1995) and their daughter Sol-hui (born c. 1998) live in a modest 12th story apartment building in Macau; Jong-nam's mistress, former Air Koryo
Air Koryo
Air Koryo ) is the state-owned national flag carrier airline of North Korea, headquartered in Sunan-guyŏk, Pyongyang. Based at Sunan International Airport , it operates international scheduled and charter services to points in Asia and Europe....
flight attendant
Flight attendant
Flight attendants or cabin crew are members of an aircrew employed by airlines primarily to ensure the safety and comfort of passengers aboard commercial flights, on select business jet aircraft, and on some military aircraft.-History:The role of a flight attendant derives from that of similar...
So Yong-la (born c. 1980), also lives in Macau. Han-sol has been linked to accounts on online social networks. In 2011 he enrolled in the United World College in Mostar
Mostar
Mostar is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the largest and one of the most important cities in the Herzegovina region and the center of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation. Mostar is situated on the Neretva river and is the fifth-largest city in the country...
, Bosnia-Herzegovina.
External links
- After Kim Jong Il
- Gallery on Kim
- Japan expels North Korean leader's 'son'
- "Rare interview with Kim Jong-Il's son", BBC, June 7, 2009 (video)