Kim makes a return to quash health rumours
seoul — North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made his first public appearance in 20 days as he celebrated the completion of a fertiliser factory near Pyongyang, state media said on Saturday, ending an absence that had triggered global rumours that he may be seriously ill.
The North’s official Korean Central News Agency, or KCNA, reported that Kim attended the ceremony on Friday in Sunchon with other senior officials, including his sister Kim Yo-jong, who many analysts predict would take over if her brother is suddenly unable to rule.
State media showed videos and photos of Kim wearing a black Mao suit and constantly smiling, walking around facilities, applauding, cutting a huge red ribbon with a scissor handed by his sister, and talking with officials.
Seemingly thousands of workers, many of them masked, stood in lines at the massive complex, roaring in celebration and releasing balloons into the air. A sign installed on a stage where Kim sat with other senior officials read: ‘Sunchon Phosphatic Fertiliser Factory; Completion Ceremony; May 1, 2020’.
There was no definite sign that Kim was in discomfort, although there were moments where his walking looked a bit stiff. He was shown moving without a walking stick, like the one he used in 2014
when he was recovering from a presumed ankle surgery. However, he was also seen riding a green electric cart, which appeared similar to a vehicle he used in 2014.
It was Kim’s first public appearance since April 11, when he presided over a ruling Workers’ Party meeting to discuss the coronavirus and reappoint his sister as an alternate member of the powerful decision-making Political Bureau of the party’s Central Committee. That move confirmed her substantial role in the government.
North Korea has said it hasn’t had a single virus case, but the claim is questioned by many outside experts. It wasn’t immediately clear what had caused Kim’s absence.
Speculation about his health swirled after he missed the April 15 birthday celebration for his late grandfather Kim Il Sung, the country’s most important holiday, for the first time since taking power in 2011.
The possibility of high-level instability raised troubling questions about the future of the secretive, nuclear-armed country that has been steadily building an arsenal meant to threaten the US mainland while diplomacy between Kim and President Donald Trump has stalled.
Some experts say South Korea, as well as its regional neighbours and ally Washington, must begin preparing for the possible chaos that could come if Kim is sidelined by health problems or even dies. Worstcase scenarios include North Korean refugees flooding South Korea or China, or military hard-liners letting loose nuclear weapons.
“The world is largely unprepared for instability in North Korea,” said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul. “Washington, Seoul and Tokyo need tighter coordination on contingency plans, while international organisations need more resources and less controversy over the role of China.” —