Little known about likely successor

NORTH Korea’s likely successor Kim Jong Un has swiftly risen to power since being made a four-star general a year ago, but he is more of an enigma than his late father was during 17 years of absolute power.

Within hours of news breaking of leader Kim Jong Il’s death over the weekend, the North’s official Korean Central News Agency was reporting that the country, people and military “must faithfully revere respectable comrade Kim Jong Un.”

The agency also referred to Jong Un as a “great successor” of the North’s philosophy of self reliance and a “distinguished leader of the military and people.”

So far, Jong Un, Kim Jong Il’s third son, has a thin leadership record — much less than the 20 years Kim Jong Il spent being groomed for power before he took over in 1994.

Despite a vigorous campaign to install Jong Un as the new leader in the people’s minds, he remains an enigma. It is unclear what direction he will take the nation of 24 million people, how much power will fall to the military and officials around him, and what China’s role will be with its ally.

The elder Kim unveiled Jong Un as his successor a year ago, putting him in top posts. Since then, Jong Un accompanied his father on trips. And Jong Un built his political clout by securing a position in the ruling Workers’ Party.

North Koreans are told he graduated from Kim Il Sung Military University, speaks several languages, including English, French, and German, and is a whiz at computing and technology. However, his birth date, his marital status and even his mother’s name — said to be Kim Jong Il’s late second wife, Ko Yong Hui — are all secrets.

Media in South Korea speculated that the four-star general orchestrated a deadly artillery attack on a frontline South Korean island last year that led to fears of war.

Jong Un was unveiled to the world last year at a military parade marking the 65th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party, saluting troops by his father’s side in an appearance captured live by international media.

His emergence settled the question of which of Kim Jong Il’s three known sons would succeed him as the third generation leader in a family dynasty that has ruled since North Korea’s post World War II inception in 1948.