daughter, son, succession, kim jong un, wife
Kim Jong Un was accompanied by his wife and daughter at a banquet celebrating the founding of the DPRK's military on Feb. 7, 2023, according to state-run media. (Rodong Sinmun-News1)

On Apr. 18, Kim Jong Un visited the National Aerospace Development Administration (NADA) and ordered officials to “form an extraordinary satellite launch preparatory committee and push forward with final preparations so as to launch the recently completed military reconnaissance satellite No. 1 in accordance with the planned timeline.” On this visit, Kim was once again accompanied by his daughter (known as “Ju Ae”).

On Nov. 19 last year, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) and other North Korean state media outlets all published photographs of a young girl wearing a white padded jacket and red shoes holding hands with Kim Jong Un as he inspected a missile launch site. The outlets reported that North Korea had “conducted a test launch of its new ICBM Hwasong-17 missile the day prior (Nov. 18, 2022)” and that “[Kim Jong Un] personally directed the entire process alongside his beloved child.” The coverage constituted the world’s first glimpse of the fourth generation of the so-called “Mt. Paektu bloodline.” South Korea’s National Intelligence Service confirmed that the girl photographed is Ju Ae. 

Since last November, Kim Jong Un has repeatedly brought his daughter along with him to attend key public events, including missile test launches, a military review commemorating the 75th anniversary of the KPA, and an athletic competition celebrating his grandfather Kim Il Sung’s birthday. It has now become commonplace to see Kim attending events with his daughter at his side. At the military review, the Mt. Paektu bloodline theme was especially prominent, with soldiers shouting the slogan “Defend the Paektu Bloodline!” and both father and daughter appearing on white horses, the symbol of Kim Jong Un’s military power. (North Korean media introduced Kim Ju Ae’s horse as the “most beloved prize horse of the beloved child.”) On top of this fanfare, state media’s epithets for Kim Ju Ae (“the noble child” and “the honorable child”) and her joint portrait with her mother in a commemorative stamp appear to be part of an unsophisticated ploy to idolize the young Kim.

North Korea experts in Korea and abroad have been actively considering the reasoning behind Kim Ju Ae’s abrupt public debut, even putting forth various theories to explain it. Some of the most popular theories include: Kim Ju Ae’s appearance at missile sites serves as a reminder that the regime will guarantee the safety of future generations through nuclear and missile development; that Kim Ju Ae has been designated as Kim’s successor; and even that the daughter’s appearance means there is an ongoing power struggle between Kim Jong Un’s wife (Ri Sol Ju) and his sister (Kim Yo Jong). 

Among these theories, the crux of the debate centers on the issue of Kim’s line of succession. In the period soon after her first appearance, the use of the regime’s most respectful titles, the issuance of a commemorative stamp, and the appearance of Ju Ae’s white horse all lent some credibility to the theory that Ju Ae had been chosen as Kim’s successor. However, as time has passed, mainstream opinion has since swung in the opposite direction with many positing that it would be nearly impossible for Kim Ju Ae to be chosen as Kim’s heir.

Those of this opinion say that Kim Ju Ae is simply too young. The outside world first learned her name back in September 2013 from US NBA basketball player Dennis Rodman, who had just returned from a trip to Pyongyang upon invitation from Kim Jong Un. After his trip, Rodman told The Guardian that he had “held [Kim’s] daughter, Ju Ae.” If his account is correct, that would make Ju Ae just about ten years old this year. By contrast, Ju Ae’s grandfather Kim Jong Il was not designated as Kim Il Sung’s successor until 1974 at the age of 33, and was only publicly announced as Kim’s heir seven years later at the age of 39. Moreover, Ju Ae’s father Kim Jong Un was not publicly announced as his father’s successor until September 2010 at the third Conference of the Workers’ Party of Korea. At the time, Kim Jong Un had been “young” given he was only 26, and many speculated his succession announcement was hurriedly pushed forward after his father Kim Jong Il had mostly recovered following his collapse from a stroke in 2008. Given past history, it seems highly unlikely that Kim Ju Ae has been designated the Kim family heir at the tender age of ten. As far as health scares go, it is worth considering that North Korean state media has reported that Kim Jong Un has been so active lately that he “could only yearn for sleep.” 

Secondly, there’s the issue of Kim Ju Ae’s gender. North Korean society ostensibly advocates gender equality, as outlined in its “Decree on the Equality of Men and Women” (July 30, 1946), which proclaims that “women have the same rights as men in affairs of state, economics, culture, society, and all other fields.” In practice, however, patriarchal values continue to have a strong foothold in North Korean society. We can get a sense of the pervasiveness of North Korea’s gender inequality through the significant number of female North Korean defectors who refer to their husbands as the heads of their households. In North Korea, the only area where men and women are equal is in their ability to provide labor for the regime. Considering the deep-rooted nature of patriarchal thought in North Korean society, it is hard to imagine a situation in which people could come to accept a woman as their supreme leader.

Third, there is no clear reason for Kim to disrupt the tradition of father-son succession and designate his daughter as future leader. South Korea’s intelligence community reports that Kim Jong Un and his wife, Ri Sol Ju, have had three children together. Their first child appears to have been a son (est. born in 2010), followed by Ju Ae (est. born 2013), and then by a third child whose gender remains unknown (est. born in 2017). It is the existence of Ju Ae’s older brother that has led South Korea’s intelligence service to believe that Ju Ae is not her father’s heir. While some have suggested that Kim might choose his daughter if his son was in poor health or was otherwise seen as unfit for leadership, observation of the Kim couple at public events does not seem to indicate any issues with the eldest son serious enough to remove him from the possible line of succession. Moreover, in the event that Ju Ae is appointed successor for one reason or another, there is the possibility that power will end up being handed over to someone who is not part of the Kim clan. In other words, another figure could take power who would bring an end to the Mt. Paektu bloodline.

With all these factors in mind, there are more than a few obstacles to Kim Ju Ae becoming her father’s successor. At the same time, her frequent appearances beg the question of why her father is parading her in public if she has not been designated as his successor. The answer to this question is that while it is generally taken for granted that Kim’s successor will be one of his children, I suspect that Kim is currently laying the groundwork to formalize the system of succession, which is currently in a state of flux. 

As is well known, the “Socialist Constitution” adopted in 1972 created a system of monolithic rule in which Kim Jong Il inherited absolute authority over the country from his father Kim Il Sung. The unprecedented move was the first attempt at hereditary succession of power in any socialist country. At the same time, North Korea was aware of outside criticism over the prospect of hereditary succession and put forth its so-called “theory on a leader’s outstanding qualities” to justify Kim Il Sung’s decision to designate his son as successor while also praising the leader for “brilliantly resolving the issue of succession” in the event of his death.

In justifying Kim Jong Il’s nomination as successor, North Korean state media at the time proclaimed that “[Kim Jong Il] stands out for his supreme ideological wisdom and unwavering revolutionary principles. Under a leader [like him] with such outstanding executive faculties, [North Korea’s] ideology is sure to grow exponentially stronger,” and that the younger Kim’s “greatest historic contribution is the way his  vigorous ideological and practical actions bring glory to Kim Il Sung’s ideology.” The media went on to heap praise on Kim Jong Il’s abilities and the important role he played as leader, claiming that Kim Jong Il had taken the ideology that Kim Il Sung had planted in Korean soil and cultivated it into a lush forest, bringing about “the golden age of the Juche era.”

Kim Jong Il, upon solidifying his position as successor, proposed the “bloodline doctrine.” The core tenet of this doctrine was that “the party must go forth and carry on the bloodline arranged by the Supreme Leader while continuing to ceaselessly strengthen and develop the Supreme Leader’s party.” Simultaneously, propaganda featured “the three generals of Mt. Paektu (Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Suk, Kim Jong Il),” the “Mt. Paektu Milyang guerilla basecamp (Samjiyon, Yanggang Province),” and “slogan trees (trees on Mt. Paektu with patriotic slogans carved into them by partisan fighters)” as part of establishing the idea of the “Mt. Paektu bloodline.” This effectively shifted the qualifications for succession away from emphasis on unique leadership qualities to a bloodline-centered justification. This Mt. Paektu bloodline doctrine is what later enabled Kim Jong Un to ascend to leadership without fierce in-fighting for political authority or demonstrating any special qualifications.  

Kim Jong Un, who inherited total control over the regime following the death of his father Kim Jong Il, brutally executed his aunt’s husband Jang Song Thaek in December 2013. He then wiped out the only other remaining possible competitor for power by assassinating his half-brother Kim Jong Nam in February 2017. In doing so, the young Kim swiftly secured authority and solidified his position as the head of the regime.

According to the North Korean Constitution, “the Dear Leader Comrade Kim Il Sung is the founder of the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea and the progenitor of socialist Korea.” In practice, this makes the DPRK no different from a monarchy. However, given the ideological gymnastics required to support socialism while openly operating as a monarchy, the regime has left this element unspoken for now. North Korea is aware of this fundamental problem and has so far successfully designated successors on a case by case basis.

However, Kim Jong Un is facing a whole new kind of problem compared to his predecessors. The second and third generation successors to the North Korean “throne” each had a chance to receive leadership education and accumulate knowledge and experience before stepping forward to be designated as successors at an appropriate age. Kim Jong Un’s children, however, are still too young.

What if something were to happen to Kim Jong Un sometime in the near future? While hereditary succession is clearly part of North Korea’s tradition, there is no actual guarantee in the form of law or regulation that would ensure that Kim’s total authority is seamlessly passed on to his children.

One such strategy that might resolve this oversight would be to append epithets like “the noble child” and “the honorable child” to Kim Ju Ae and to make her the focus of international attention by bringing her along to public events. From this point of view, Kim’s strategy may have been reasonably effective. For better or for worse, every person in North Korea now knows ten-year-old Ju Ae’s face, and for those in the outside world, Kim Ju Ae has now become closely linked with the debate over who will succeed Kim Jong Un. 

I anticipate that North Korea will carefully gauge the effectiveness of this tactic and go on to emphasize that: 1) regardless of age or gender, only the direct descendants of the Kim line are qualified for leadership; and that 2) this principle will be made into a widely understood norm through various proactive propaganda activities. In other words, Kim Jong Un bringing his daughter with him in public might be yet another calculated move to “brilliantly resolve the issue of succession.” One might even say that these kinds of cunning maneuvers are something of a treasured Kim family trade secret passed down over the last almost 80 years, beginning with Kim Il Sung all the way to his grandson Kim Jong Un.

Translated by Rose Adams. Edited by Robert Lauler. 

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