Kim Yo Jong, the younger sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, is a vice department director in the Central Committee of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), a Korean Central News Agency report confirmed Thursday.
Accompanying Kim Jong Un on a visit to the Korean April 26 Cartoon Film Studio in Pyongyang, Kim Yo Jong was referred to for the first time by North Korean state-controlled media as being a vice (or deputy) department director within the party. Previously, she was simply referred to as an ambiguous “senior official” of the WPK Central Committee.
Kim Yo Jong’s current position may be in the WPK Propaganda & Agitation Department. She is reportedto have worked there previously under the alias Kim Ye Jong. Another official present with her at this recent appearance, Kim Ui Sun, is a known member of that department and the animation studio is very likely guided to some degree by the same department. She could easily be in one of many other departments, though.
She has also reportedly worked as a secretary for Kim Jong Un, arranging meetings and serving as an intermediary between party and government officials. According to North Korea Leadership Watch, Kim Yo Jong has ties to the Guard Command and Ministry of State Security.
While much is still unknown about Kim’s sister, it has become clear that she is a significantly high-ranking official in the WPK and the North Korean government. This role can be seen as comparable to that of Kim Jong Un’s aunt, Kim Kyong Hui, who held numerous official posts and significant personal influence on Kim Jong Il, King Jong Un’s father.
She was first seen in state media for her father’s funeral in December 2011 and first mentioned by name on March 9, when she accompanied her brother in voting in elections for the Supreme People’s Assembly, North Korea’s rubber stamp legislature. Since that time, she has made a total of 15 different appearances in state media.
Kim Yo Jong is – like Kim Jong Un – the daughter of Kim Jong Il and Ko Yong Hui and was born September 26, 1987, according to Kenji Fujimoto, the former sushi chef for Kim Jong Il. She was reportedly educated both within North Korea – at Kim Il Sung University – and abroad, including with her brother in Switzerland under the alias Kim Yong Sun.
Photo: KCNA
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