'From there it is a simple matter to respond by designing a propaganda strategy to use the existing public discussion to the regime's advantage.' 'What matters is that the North Korean regime will have received word from its many, many, many informants that Kim's condition was a talking point among ordinary people,' he said. The regime may have intended from the beginning to emphasise the fact that Kim is working hard for the people at a time of widespread hardship, or its messaging may have been an unintended consequence of Kim's inevitable appearance, Green said. 'Regardless of the motivation for Kim's rapid weight loss, it seems there is propaganda value in showing that even the leader of North Korea is enduring the same food shortages that are hitting the country at the current time.' 'The most likely reason they would mention his declining weight in this way would, in my opinion, be related to ongoing COVID-19-related border measures,' said Chad O'Carroll, CEO of the Seoul-based Korea Risk Group. Kim has acknowledged a 'tense' food situation that could worsen if this year's crops fail, exacerbating economic problems amid strict self-imposed border and movement restrictions that have slowed trade to a trickle. 'What's clear - from the KCTV footage - is the regime wants the world to think that its people love care for their leader, to a point where they'd cry over his thinner appearance.' 'No one can really know why he lost weight,' he told AFP. Last year it was estimated he had put on another 20 pounds, taking him to around 305 pounds.īut Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies, pointed out it was unlikely his recent weight loss was a symptom of acute ill health, as he had attended several public events this month. Last year it was estimated Kim Jong Un (pictured in May 2020) had put on another 20 pounds, taking him to around 305 pounds In 2016, South Korea's spy agency reported Kim had bulked up to 285 pounds, having piled on around 90 pounds since taking power in 2011, 'bingeing on food and drink'. Kim's father Kim Jong-Il and grandfather Kim Il-Sung were also obese and heavy smokers. Global speculation about Kim's health flared last year after he missed the commemoration of the birthday of his late grandfather, and was absent from public view for about 20 days. 'The message Pyongyang is sending is that Kim is a leader who works very hard for his people even to a degree he skips meals and loses weight,' defector-turned-researcher Ahn Chan-il told AFP. It shut its borders in January last year to protect itself against the pandemic, and as a result trade with Beijing - its economic lifeline - has slowed to a trickle while all international aid workers have left the country. 'If outside observers picked up on the change in Kim's appearance, you can bet your bottom dollar that the North Korean people noticed it, too, and more quickly,' said Christopher Green, a Korea specialist at Leiden University in the Netherlands. 'Everyone is talking about how their tears welled up immediately.'Īnalysts say Pyongyang is using Kim's appearance as a way to glorify him by portraying him as a 'devoted, hardworking' leader as the country struggles to tackle its food crisis and other challenges. 'Seeing our respected general secretary looking emaciated breaks our people's hearts the most,' he said. Kim's personal life is normally taboo for North Korea's state media and Pyongyang has never even confirmed how many children he has.īut KCTV last week aired a clip of an unnamed resident of the capital claiming everyone in the country was 'heartbroken' by his 'emaciated' condition. Some observers say Kim - who is about 5ft8in tall and has previously weighed 308 pounds may have lost between 22 and 44 pounds. Known as a heavy smoker, the leader has long been obese, with his weight appearing to increase steadily in recent years.īut he looked noticeably less overweight in recent media images published by Pyongyang's official KCNA news agency and on state television. The impoverished, nuclear-armed country is more isolated than ever behind its self-imposed coronavirus barricade, and this month admitted it was tackling a food crisis, sounding the alarm in a nation with a moribund agricultural sector that has long struggled to feed itself.Īt the same time Kim's health has long been closely watched internationally as his sudden death would raise questions over succession and stability. South Korea's spy agency reported Kim (pictured in 2018) had bulked up to 285 pounds, having piled on around 90 pounds since taking power in 2011, 'bingeing on food and drink'Īnalysts say the remarks showed authorities were seeking to use the change to Kim's weight to reinforce loyalty to the regime in desperate times.
0 kommentar(er)
