Kim Jong-Il
Kim Jong-Il | |
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Personal life | |
Date and place of birth | February 16, 1941/1942 Vyatskoye, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
Parents | Kim Il Sung Kim Jong-suk |
Claimed religion | Atheist |
Education | Kim Il-sung University |
Spouse | Kim Young Sook Song Hye-rim Ko Young-hee Kim Ok |
Children | Kim Sul-song Kim Il-soon Kim Jong-nam Kim Jong-chul Kim Jong-un |
Date & Place of Death | December 17, 2011
Pyongyang |
Manner of Death | n/a |
Place of burial | n/a |
Dictatorial career | |
Country | North Korea |
Military service | n/a |
Highest rank attained | None |
Political beliefs | Communism |
Political party | Workers' Party of Korea |
Date of dictatorship | July 8, 1994 |
Wars started | Minor skirmishes with South Korea |
Number of deaths attributed | 2,000,000 to 3,000,000+ |
Kim Jong Il (Hangul:김정일; Hanja:金正日) (birth name Yuri Irsenovich Kim) (born February 16, 1941, in Vyatskoye, Russia; died December 17, 2011[1]) was the dictator of North Korea. He came to power in 1994 and died in 2011. He was also the leader of the North Korean Communist party (officially, the Worker's Party of Korea). He was criticized for extensive human rights abuses in North Korea and for turning the country into a state sponsor of Communist and Islamic terrorism.[2] Over one million people in North Korea starved to death as a result of his corrupt government, disastrous agricultural polices, and refusal to accept international aid.
Kim was only 5 feet 3 inches tall,[3] but styled his hair in an exaggerated fashion to appear to be taller leading some to speculate he had a Napoleon Complex.
Kim Jong-Il was also thought to be a hypochondriac, as well as his chronic fear of flying. He traveled by a custom built armored train. He was also famous also for his lavish lifestyle, having been known to have at one time abducted a Japanese sushi chef for the sole purpose of making sushi for his "high exaltedness".[4] He also possessed a hot temper and was very easily offended over perceived slights, which led him to frequently threaten to declare war against or attack neighboring countries South Korea and Japan as well as the United States; he passed those traits on to his son, current North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.
Contents
Biography
He came into power in 1994, after his father Kim Il-sung died, and remained the North Korean dictator until his own death. He was an atheist and an intense persecutor of Christians and other organized religions. He was in conflict with the world community over the building of nuclear weapons, but seemed to relish the attention. During his rule, Kim claimed North Korea had built a nuclear weapon.
Cult of personality
Although not to the same extent as Kim Il-Sung, North Koreans venerated Kim Jong-Il under a similar cult of personality. Some examples of outlandish claims that were part of Kim Jong-Il's personality cult:
- He was claimed to have been born under a double rainbow on the sacred Baektul Mountain in 1942. At the moment of his birth, a bright star lit up the sky, the seasons spontaneously changed from winter to spring and a double rainbow appeared in the sky. (In truth, he was born in Vyatskoye, Siberia in 1941.)[5]
- He was claimed to have, at the age of four, "smeared a Japanese map with black ink, then a stormy rain poured down on Japan."
- He was claimed to have, the very first time he ever played golf, scored 11 holes-in-one on an 18-hole golf course. (The odds of doing that even over a four-month period have been calculated to be 12 septillion to 1.)
Military First
"Military First" is a program begun around the beginning of 2007 in Communist North Korea to elevate the power of the military and Kim Jong-Il over the North Koreans. The program uses mind control techniques through manipulation of the media and culture.
Despite famine and poverty in North Korea, nearly 40% its budget is spent on glorifying and deifying the family of Kim Jong-Il.
Death
Kim Jong-Il died on December 17, 2011 by a heart attack. After his death, his son Kim Jong-un took power over North Korea.
See also
- List of dictators
- Dictatorship of the proletariat
- List of Communist States
- List of Socialist States
- Death toll of communism
- Cult of personality
- Communist Racism
References
- ↑ https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-10745725
- ↑ Eyes Wide Shut to North Korea's Terror Ties at Forbes.com
- ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/1907197.stm
- ↑ https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2004/01/i-was-kim-jong-ils-cook/8837/
- ↑ http://asianhistory.about.com/od/profilesofasianleaders/p/BioKimJongil.htm