hankyoreh

By Son Won-je, Staff Writer

Kim Jong-un→Jang Song-thaek→Kim Ki-nam→Choe Thae-bok→Ri Yong-ho→Kim Yong-chun→Kim Jong-gak→U Tong-chuk (presumed). This was the list of the North Korean leadership who escorted the hearse at the funeral of late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il on Wednesday. Observers interpret this as perhaps a signal that they will form the core leadership that will lead North Korea under the post-Kim Jong-il system of Kim Jong-un. With the eyes of the North Korean people and the world on them, these major North Korean leadership figures watched over the departed Kim and his incoming successor, Kim Jong-un, the closest.

The most significant thing was the appearance order of National Defence Commission vice chairman Jang Song-thaek. With the exception of Jang, the other figures generally followed the same rank as they were on the funeral committee. On the right side of the hearse were figures from the Workers's Party of Korea and state like party secretary Kim Ki-nam, who was 8th on the funeral committee list, and Supreme People's Assembly chairman Choe Thae-bok, who was 9th. On the left side of the hearse were military figures: chief of general staff of the Korean People’s Army and WPK Central Military Commission vice chairman Ri Yong-ho, who was 4th; defense minister Kim Yong-chun, who was 5th; and first vice-director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army Kim Jong-gak, who was 24th. Jang, on the other hand, was listed at only 19th on the funeral commission list, but he stood right behind Kim Jong-un. This is interpreted as a scene symbolically showing that Jang is playing the role of central guardian of the Kim Jong-un regime, regardless of his official position on the funeral committee list. On Dec 25, Jang appeared on Korea Central TV in a general’s uniform to pay his respects at the Kumsusan Memorial Palace, signaling that along with the military leadership he would play the role of pivot of the supporting forces of the Kim Jong-un system.

It is also noteworthy that each of these figures could be seen as representing the WPK, the state and the military leadership. University of North Korean Studies professor Yang Moo-jin said one could view Jang as representing the National Defence Commission, the highest leadership body according to the North Korean constitution; Kim Ki-nam as representing the WPK; and Choe as representing the Supreme People's Assembly, North Korea’s highest sovereign body. Meanwhile, on the military leadership side, it appears Ri came to represent the general staff of the KPA, Kim Yong-chun came to represent the defense ministry, and Kim Jong-gak came to represent the General Political Bureau, the three major organizations within the military, he said. Along the same lines, some also observe that it could have been a calculated scene to plant the impression that the major figures of the party, National Defence Commission and military leadership who advised Kim Jong-il would follow the Kim Jong-un regime with loyalty. The inclusion of Kim Ki-nam, a WPK secretary in charge of propaganda, was the second party official on the list, coming just after Kim Kuk-thae (7th), Inspection Committee Chairman of the WPK Central Committee; this appears to have been out of consideration that Kim is a close aide who has handled the propaganda efforts of the Kim Jong-un regime.

Some obervers think the positioning of the military leaders in other order of Ri, Kim Yong-chun and Kim Jong-gak could be seen as meaning that the “palace guard” of Ri and Kim Jong-gak would lead, while at the same time embracing old guard figures like Kim Yong-chun, who some believed had been forced out by forces close to Kim Jong-un. The positing could be seen as intended to show that the regime is already firmly securing the loyalty of the old guard rather than form a new military leadership.

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