Kim Jong Il
(b. 1941), leader of North Korea. Son of the founder of the People's Democratic Republic of Korea (North Korea), Kim Jong Il was born on 16 February 1941, probably in the Soviet Far East or Manchuria, although Pyongyang (the capital of North Korea) claims he was born on the sacred Mount Paektu. As a boy, he was sent to China during the Korean War (1950–1953) and later took pilot training in East Germany. Graduating from Kim Il Sung University in 1964, he went to work in the Korean Workers' Party secretariat, where he assisted with political purges in 1967. He married in 1966, divorced in 1971, and remarried in 1973. Groomed to succeed his father from 1973, when he became the unofficial Korean Workers' Party leader (referred to as the "party center"), Kim gradually became the second most powerful figure in North Korea.
Formally acknowledged as successor in 1980, he was thenceforth known as the "Dear Leader" and was absorbed into his father's personality cult. Information about him at this time is sketchy, but he reportedly was in charge of key party and personnel decisions and directed North Korea's foreign terrorism campaign. He was said to be highly interested in new production methods and was heavily involved in labor-mobilization campaigns. Foreign news reports described him as a hard-drinking playboy, much interested in movies and fast cars. He was invariably pictured with a bouffant hairdo, wearing a jumpsuit, square glasses, and elevator shoes.
Kim took power upon his father's death in July 1994 yet curiously remained out of public view for some time. Though already nominal military leader, he did not assume any of the elder Kim's military roles until he was named secretary general of the Korean Workers' Party in October 1997. North Korea's economyvirtually collapsed under his rule, and, due to floods and drought, an extended famine greatly affected many rural areas. His government admitted that several hundred thousand people died, though foreign relief agencies felt that the numbers were much higher. Kim talked often about the need for economic changes and introduced modest liberalization, yet the Stalinist structure and juche (self-reliance) ideology inherited from his father remained essentially intact.
South Korean President Kim Dae Jung (L) and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il raise hands on 14 June 2000 in Pyongyang. They had just concluded a meeting which produced a joint statement of cooperation. (REUTERS NEWMEDIA INC./CORBIS)Kim also continued his father's nuclear and missile development programs, but in late 1994 he agreed to give up the former in exchange for a foreign-built nuclear reactor and assented to a moratorium for the latter in 1998. He became increasingly reliant on the Korean People's Army (KPA) for political support and maintenance of public order, and most of his appearances were at KPA events. Kim surprised many observers by his ebullient reception of South Korean leader Kim Dae Jung at a Pyongyang summit in June 2000. He agreed to a second summit to be held later in Seoul, South Korea.
Further Reading
Cumings, Bruce. (1997) Korea's Place in the Sun: A Modern History. New York: Norton, 414–417.
Eberstadt, Nicholas. (1994) "North Korea: Reform, Muddling Through, or Collapse?" In One Korea?: Challenges and Prospects for Reunification, edited by Thomas H. Henriksen and Kyung Soo Lho. Stanford, CA: Hoover Institution Press, 15–16.
Gill, B. K. (1996) Korea versus Korea: A Case of Contested Legitimacy. London: Routledge.
Hoare, James, and Susan Pares. (1999) Conflict in Korea: An Encyclopedia. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 79.
Nahm, Andrew C. (1993) Introduction to Korean History and Culture. Elizabeth, NJ: Hollym, 137–139, 258, 261, 277–297.
Oberdorfer, Don. (1997) The Two Koreas: A Contemporary History. New York: Basic Books, 346–350.
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