Kim Jong Il

(1942– )

   Eldest son and political heir of Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il was born in the Soviet Union where his mother was taking refuge during the struggle against Japan. He loyally supported his father, helping in the development of the cult of personality and holding a number of political posts in his father’s regime. On the death of his father he took over as leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, but only after an official three-year mourning period had elapsed did he became official leader of the Korean Workers’ Party. With the abolition of the position of president in 1998, the post of chairman of the National Defense Commission, held by Kim Jong Il since 1993, became the highest and most powerful office of state. There are indications that North Korea under Kim Jong Il is becoming marginally less secretive and isolationist.