Older son cool to plan for N. Korea
Rare public discord on Japanese TV
BEIJING – The casino-loving eldest son of North Korea’s Kim Jong Il – once tapped to succeed him before trying to sneak into Japan to go to Disneyland – says he opposes a hereditary transfer of power to his youngest half-brother.
It’s the first public sign of discord in the tightly choreographed succession process, though analysts said Kim Jong Nam spends so much time outside his native land that his opinion carries little weight.
The 39-year-old Kim, the oldest of three brothers who were in the running to take over secretive North Korea, is the closest thing the country has to a playboy.
Unlike many of his countrymen back home who lack the resources and connections to travel overseas, Kim travels freely and spends much of his time in China or the country’s special autonomous region of Macau – the center of Asian gambling with its Las Vegas-style casinos.
Speaking in Korean, he told Japan’s TV Asahi, in an interview from Beijing aired late Monday and Tuesday, that he is “against third-generation succession,” but added, “I think there were internal factors. If there were internal factors, (we) should abide by them.”
“I have no regrets about it. I wasn’t interested in it and I don’t care,” Kim said, when asked whether he is OK with the succession plan.
Kim said he hopes his brother will do his best to bring abundance to the lives of North Koreans and that he stands ready to help from abroad.
Kim Jong Un, believed to be 26, appeared with his father at Pyongyang celebrations on Sunday marking the 65th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party. The appearance was less than two weeks after he was named to a top political post and promoted to four-star general.
Andrei Lankov, a Russian expert on North Korea at Seoul’s Kookmin University, said Kim Jong Nam’s remarks were “almost a challenge” but noted he has little influence and lacks military support.
“I don’t see them rallying to Kim Jong Nam,” he added, emphasizing that key generals who run the military far prefer Kim Jong Un, who they see as young, inexperienced and thus easy to control.