Diagnosing What Ails North Korea's Kim Jong Il

ABC News ^ | 09/15/10 | JOOHEE CHO

[TigerLikesRooster]

Diagnosing What Ails North Korea's Kim Jong Il

Delay of Country's Congress Renews Question: Is Kim Jong Ill?

By JOOHEE CHO

SEOUL, South Korea, Sept. 15, 2010

North Korea abruptly postponed today what was billed as the country's largest political convention in 30 years, renewing speculation that the secretive country's supreme leader Kim Jong Il may be too sick -- possibly with diabetes -- to dominate the convention.

Experts have widely speculated that the meeting would be a way for Kim to promote his youngest son, Kim Jong Un, as his heir apparent.

But Good Friends, a welfare group based in Seoul, says the delegates from all over the nation are heading back to their hometowns after the convention was postponed "due to floods" and "due to lack of quorum."

The group, quoting a representative in Pyongyang who was waiting for the meeting to convene, said many participants could not travel to the convention "because the roads were disconnected by Typhoon Kompasu," which hit the nation on Sept. 2.

As if to back up the speculation, Pyongyang's official state media reported today that dozens of people were killed, 8,000 homes damaged, communications cut off, and railroads disconnected by the typhoon.

But most North Korean watchers in Seoul believe the real reason for the delay is either because the senior communist party officials could not reach an agreement regarding the role of heir apparent Kim Jong Un, or because Kim Jong Il's health is seriously deteriorating.

[SevenofNine]

Is me or what is this turn into Korean version of 1968 movie Lion in winter

Just sayin

[Georgia Girl 2]

Who cares? Just die already.

[nw_arizona_granny]

Thank you for pinging me.

[AdmSmith]

There is a possibility for a collective leadership.

This will be bloody when the great leader logs out.
http://www.ytn.co.kr/_ln/0101_201009190216441709

[SevenofNine]

I think you might be right Lord Protector for Chia Pet son like they did back in England for King Edward VI

[SevenofNine]

I think you might be right Lord Protector for Chia Pet son like they did back in England for King Edward VI

[AU72]

Maybe the Military doesn’t like any of the above for the next Dear Leader and is about to announce their preference.

[TigerLikesRooster]

Resuscitating the long dormant ‘Standing Committee’ of Party’s Politburo has been reported for the last week or so. One report says that it will consists of Kim Jong-il, Kim Jong-eun, Jang Sung-taek, and two senor military man. Except Kim Jong-eun, the rest are already members of National Defense Commission, the current defacto ruling body. However, this is a move to strengthen the Party which has been sidelined for more than a decade. Kim Jong-eun’s powerbase is supposed to grow based on the party centered around its Standing Committee. IMHO, in time, members of Defense Commission will retire due to old age(many are near 80’s or above) or probably other ‘forceful’ means(Kim Jong-eun is one impatient man when it comes to power-gradding.) Then the Defense Commission would be phased out. naturally.

[AdmSmith]

English article:

Kim Jong-il’s sister may harbor crown ambition

“Not only is (Kim Jong-un) young and inexperienced, but his aunt, Kim Kyung-hee, Kim Jong-il’s sister and the wife of the second-ranking figure in North Korea's hierarchy, Jang Song-taek, may balk at power slipping through her fingers,” said Yuriko Koike, Japan's former minister of defense and national security adviser, in a piece she contributed to South China Morning Post.

Koike backs her claim, by pointing out that Kim Kyung-hee has served in a range of key Workers’ Party positions and has been a member of the all-powerful Central Committee.

Her power partly comes from Kim Jong-il’s trust on her as well. Kim Jong-il has described his sister as “my only blood family whom I was asked to take care of by my mother till the moment she died,” the Japanese observer said.

“Indeed, in a country where trust rarely exists, Kim Kyung-hee is the only blood relation whom Kim Jong-il has ever fully trusted,” she said.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2010/09/113_73287.html

[AdmSmith]

Thanks, you have excellent insight into what is happening in this strange country.

[TigerLikesRooster]

Correction: power-graddinggrabbing.

[TigerLikesRooster]

More correction: two senorsenior military manmen.

[SevenofNine]

OH OH turn into Korean version of Lion in winter LOL!

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks AdmSmith.

[AdmSmith]

According to http://www.newdaily.co.kr/news/article.html?no=56881 Kim Jong Il has serious cardiovascular problems with blood clots clogging his veins. He has been unconscious on several occasions. Their source tell them that he will be 100 % recovered at the workers party meeting September 28. But, I do not think that he will participate in the Workers Party's party.

[Jet Jaguar]

bump

[TigerLikesRooster]

Thanks for head-up. I will try to translate this. There is another article from RFA saying that Chia Head was so exhausted that he frequently doze off unexpectedly and won't wake up for 5 minutes. It happens at such a frequency that they worried that he will do the same for lengthy session of party conference, which is embarrassing at best but mostly disturbing to participants.

[AdmSmith]

Check list:
Has he changed his glasses recently?
How is he walking (deep vein thrombosis = DVT)?
Has he been seen sitting in a wheel chair?
Any changes in his clinical/medical description?

[odds]

The N.Korean regime in many respects, propaganda, oppression, etc.. sounds very much like Islamic Iran. So, what is posted in the main article & comments from TigerLikesRooster don’t surprise me a bit. A main difference w/Islamic Iran is that N. Korea is not a religious dictatorship (a theocracy). Iran in that sense is worse, because an Islamic state is more acceptable, with a variety of excuses, because Islam has a status of religion.

BTW, right now there is a live & lively debate on an Australian TV channel about “Banning of the Burqa in France” & whether we should follow suit in Australia. Worth watching:

http://news.sbs.com.au/insight/episode/index/id/311#watchonline

Maybe someone could start a new thread on this one.

[odds]

p.s. - you could also try this link, SBS insight program may put the whole 1 hour debate online in a few hours or perhaps tomorrow.

http://news.sbs.com.au/insight/episode/index/id/311