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Eternal General Secretary Kim Jong-il 김정일 | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait of comrade Kim Jong-il | |
| Born | 1942 February 16 Paektusan Camp, Korea |
| Died | 2011 December 17 (aged 69) Pyongyang, DPRK |
| Cause of death | Heart attack |
| Nationality | Korean |
| Political orientation | Juche Marxism–Leninism Anti-imperialism |
| Political party | Workers' Party of Korea |
Kim Jong-il (1942 February 16 – 2011 December 17) was the General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea from 1997 to 2011 and Eternal General Secretary since his death. He was the son of Eternal President Kim Il-sung and father of current leader Kim Jong-un. The DPRK's constitution describes him as a "peerless patriot and defender of socialist Korea."[1] A poll in 2011 showed that 55% of defectors in South Korea believe that the majority of the DPRK's population supported Kim Jong-il.[2]
Early life
Kim Jong-il was born on February 16, 1942 in the secret Paektusan camp.[3]
He was involved with the Democratic Youth League when he was young and published his first works at the age of 23.[4] He became vice-chairman of his school's DYL branch in 1957.[5]
Political career
Central Committee
Kim was elected to the central committee of the WPK in 1964.[5]
He became Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army in 1991 and General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea in 1997.[4]
General Secretary
Under Kim's leadership, Korea overcame flooding and economic crisis caused by the overthrow of the Soviet Union. He mobilized the KPA to increase production capacity in record time and introduced the policy of Songun (military first).[5]
References
- ↑ Pak Thae-song (2019). Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea: 'Preamble'. Pyongyang.
- ↑ "Socialism and Democracy in the DPRK" (2017-03-28). Write to Rebel. Retrieved 2022-04-30.
- ↑ "Special feature: The Day of Shining Star" (2023-02-15). Pyongyang Times. Retrieved 2023-07-16.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 LYC Honors Kim Jong-il (2022-01-11). Red Patriot. Archived from the original on 2022-01-11.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Comrade Kim Jong Il’s lifelong contribution to the Korean revolution" (2021-07-23). Lalkar. Archived from the original on 2022-05-21. Retrieved 2022-12-04.