Kim moves to guard against threat of coup
North Korea has replaced its three most senior military officials with less hawkish appointees, leading analysts to speculate that Kim Jong Un is attempting to sideline hardline factions within the regime.
Those who are opposed to Kim’s shift away from the longstanding ‘‘military first’’ policy in favour of rebuilding the economy are thought to have been pushed aside.
There are suggestions that the North Korean leader is acting out of concern that disgruntled military officers might attempt a coup when he travels to Singapore later this week for a summit with Donald Trump on June 12.
No Kwang-chol, formerly the first vice-minister of the People’s Armed Forces, was promoted to minister during a meeting of the Central Military Commission on May 17 that was presided over by Kim. South Korean intelligence has been unable to ascertain the fate of his predecessor, Pak Yongsik, The Korea Herald reported.
There are also reports that Ri Myong-su, chief of the general staff, has been replaced, although it is not clear who has taken over the role. Ri was caught on television apparently falling asleep during a meeting of the Central Committee on May 20 and may well have been punished for it.
The most significant change is that Kim Su-gil, the former chairman of the Pyongyang City Committee of the Workers’ Party, took over as director of the military’s General Political Bureau in May from Kim Jong-gak, who had only been in the post since January.
‘‘A prudent dictator replaces people fairly regularly so they do not become too entrenched or powerful within their realms or build up sufficient influence to plot rebellion,’’ said Daniel Pinkston, a professor of international relations at the Seoul campus of Troy University. ‘‘Replacing these officials is probably an attempt to coup-proof his regime because a dictator is at his most vulnerable when he is travelling abroad.’’ – Telegraph Group Marjory Stoneman Douglas High students plan to take bus tours across the country this summer to promote change after the shooting at their high school that killed 17 people in February.
The effort involves encouraging young people to register to vote, and championing gun control by naming politicians who accept donations from the National Rifle Association.
In March, hundreds of thousands of young people rallied in