Ouster is warning to North Korea elite

No one beyond Kim’s reach, not even uncle

SEOUL, South Korea — While the rest of North Korea’s top brass leaped to their feet before Kim Jong Un, clapping wildly in a requisite show of respect at high-level meetings, his uncle, Jang Song Thaek, often seemed nonchalant, at times even bored. Once considered the force behind the young leader, he displayed a bold insouciance that seemed calculated to show he was beyond reach.

So by purging his own uncle, Kim has delivered a more chilling message: No one is beyond reach, not even family.

Jang’s fall from grace, accompanied by allegations from corruption to womanizing and capped by his arrest at a party meeting Sunday, has no doubt spooked Pyongyang’s elite. It also suggests Kim is still trying to consolidate the power he inherited from his father two years ago.

This is far from Kim’s first purge. Several defense ministers and army chiefs have been replaced as the Workers’ Party has asserted control over the military after 17 years of military-first rule under late leader Kim Jong Il.

But it is the ouster of Jang, who was considered North Korea’s second-most powerful figure, that sends the strongest signal to anyone seeking to challenge Kim Jong Un.

Jang, 67, occupied a privileged and yet precarious spot within the inner circle. He is the husband of Kim Kyong Hui, the only daughter of late President Kim Il Sung, younger sister to Kim Jong Il and aunt to Kim Jong Un.

Jang was seen as a regent figure as Kim Jong Un was being groomed to succeed his father. He rose in party and military ranks alongside his baby-faced nephew, often dressed in a trim white general’s uniform and standing within arm’s length of Kim on field visits and at state events.

In 2012, he led a business delegation to China to discuss the construction of special economic zones. He also served as chairman of the State Physical Culture and Sports Guidance Commission, which oversees many of Kim’s pet projects.

Last week, South Korea’s spy agency gave the first public word that Jang may have been dismissed. It said that he had not been seen publicly in weeks and his two closest confidants had been executed.

North Korean state media have not confirmed the executions, but on Monday they made clear that Jang is out. Images aired on state TV showed him being stripped of all his titles at Sunday’s party meeting led by Kim. Premier Pak Pong Ju was in tears as he denounced his longtime friend.

This time, there was no white general’s uniform: Jang was dressed in civilian wear and sitting in the audience, not with the rest of the leadership. Party members watched impassively, barely flinching or raising an eyebrow, as two men grabbed Jang.

State media laid out a laundry list of Jang’s transgressions, including instigating party dissent and squandering party funds on drugs, gambling and women. He was branded “depraved” for living a “capitalist” lifestyle.