Kim Kyong-hui

File:Fahey DSCF3023 (6074798813).jpg, father Kim Il Sung and brother Kim Jong Il]]

Kim was born in Pyongyang on 30 May 1946 to Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Suk. Her mother died when she was four. After her father remarried, she was raised by various surrogates away from the family.{{Cite news |last=Koike |first=Yuriko |date=16 September 2010 |title=A Ruthless Sister Risks Becoming North Korea's Next Ruler |work=The Daily Star |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=5&article_id=119330#axzz0zwdV6uYa |url-status=dead |access-date=19 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100918072535/http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=5&article_id=119330#axzz5gAoSP4lE |archive-date=18 September 2010}}

After a brief period spent in Jilin Province, China due to the Korean War, Kim returned to Pyongyang with her brother, Kim Jong Il. She entered Kim Il Sung University in 1963, studying political economy. Kim attended the Kim Il Sung Higher Party School in 1966, and went to study at Moscow State University in 1968.{{Cite web |date=17 August 2010 |title=Kim Kyong Hui |url=http://nkleadershipwatch.wordpress.com/kji-2/kim-kyong-hui |access-date=2 September 2011 |website=North Korea Leadership Watch |archive-date=23 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110823082705/http://nkleadershipwatch.wordpress.com/kji-2/kim-kyong-hui/ |url-status=live }}

Kim's political career began in 1971 with a position in the Korean Democratic Women's Union, and in 1975 she was transferred to the post of vice-director of the International Liaison Department of the Workers' Party of Korea, promoted to first vice-director in 1976. It was the period when North Korea was establishing diplomatic relations with a number of capitalist countries, like Thailand and Singapore, as well as the United Nations. She oversaw the placement of qualified diplomatic personnel during her tenure as International Department vice-director.

In 1988, Kim was promoted to WPK Central Committee member and director of the Light Industry Department. In 1990, she was elected deputy to the Supreme People's Assembly for the first time. Her role was particularly significant as she led the Economic Policy Inspection Department, then again the Light Industry Department during the "Arduous March" period after Kim Il Sung's death.

{{chart top|The Kim family tree (DPRK)}}

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{{Tree chart| | | | | | | | | |NYA|~|y|SONG| | NYA= Na Hyeon-Jik| SONG= Kim Song-Ryeong}}

{{Tree chart| | | | | | | | | | | | | | !|}}

{{Tree chart| | | | | | | LEE|~|y|~| UNGU| |UNGU=Kim Ŭngu|LEE= Lady Lee}}

{{Tree chart| | | | | | | | | | |!| | |}}

{{Tree chart| | | |GrMa |~|y|~| GRP | |GrMa=Yi Po-Ik (Lee Bo-Ik)|GRP=Kim Pohyŏn}}

{{Tree chart| | | | | | | |)|-|-|-|.| }}

{{Tree chart| | | MOM |y| DAD | | GWON|MOM=Kang Pan Sok|DAD=Kim Hyong-jik|GWON=Kim Hyong-gwon}}

{{Tree chart| | | | | |)|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|.|}}

{{Tree chart| |AE|y| ME |y| WIFE| | JOE||JOE=Kim Yong-Ju|ME=Kim Il-Sung| WIFE= Kim Jong-suk| AE= Kim Song-ae|}}

{{Tree chart| | | | |!| | | |!| }}

{{Tree chart| | | | |!| | | |)|-|-|v|-|-|-|.}}

{{Tree chart| | |PYONGIL| |JONGIL| | KYONGHUI| | MANIL| | MANIL=Kim Man-il | JONGIL= Kim Jong Il | KYONGHUI= Kim Kyong-hui | PYONGIL= Kim Pyong-il}}

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Kim disappeared from the limelight in 2003, in the same period when Jang Song-thaek was apparently purged as well. However, while her husband resurfaced with a high-level position in 2007, she did not appear in public until 2009, playing a more and more prominent role, accompanying Kim Jong Il to several inspection tours and attending official events. On 27 September 2010, it was announced that she was made a general in the Korean People's Army,{{Cite news |last=McDonald |first=Mark |date=27 September 2010 |title=Kim's Son Elevated Before Meeting |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/28/world/asia/28korea.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=27 September 2010 |archive-date=30 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170830111416/http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/28/world/asia/28korea.html |url-status=live }} the first woman in North Korea to achieve this military rank.{{Cite news |date=13 December 2013 |title=North Korea's Secretive 'First Family' |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11297747 |access-date=29 August 2017 |archive-date=24 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224133003/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11297747 |url-status=live }} This coincided with her nephew Kim Jong Un's promotion to the same rank.{{Cite news |date=27 September 2010 |title=Kim Jong-il's Son Promoted to Rank of General |work=France 24 |agency=AFP |url=https://www.france24.com/en/20100927-north-korea-kim-jong-il-general-ahead-rare-meeting-jong-un-succession |access-date=22 September 2019 |archive-date=22 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190922145341/https://www.france24.com/en/20100927-north-korea-kim-jong-il-general-ahead-rare-meeting-jong-un-succession |url-status=live }} A day later, the 3rd Conference of the Workers' Party elected her as a member of the Political Bureau, which is the central organization of the party. Kim Kyong-hui later continued to pose as a prominent member of the North Korean leadership under Kim Jong Un. Kim was elected member of the WPK Secretariat and a leading figure of the WPK Organization and Guidance Department (the foremost party department led by her uncle Kim Yong-ju until 1974, and by Kim Jong Il himself from 1974 till his death) at the 4th Party Conference in April 2012.{{citation needed|date=January 2014}}

According to South Korean sources, Kim also worked as Kim Jong Il's personal aide.Chosun Ilbo, dated 11 February 2010. Her influential position in North Korean echelons (also confirmed by Kenji Fujimoto) allowed her to maintain close relations with president Kim Yong-nam of the SPA Presidium, WPK Secretaries Choe Thae-bok and Kim Ki-nam, and Director Kim Yang-gon of the WPK United Front Department. Her post as head of the Light Industry Department gave her a prominent role in shaping North Korean economic policy as it was shifting its focus on developing light industry.2010, 2011 New Year editorials by Rodong Sinmun, Joson Inmingun, and Chongnyon Jonwi.

In 2010, Kim opened the first hamburger restaurant in Pyongyang.{{Cite news |date=15 October 2010 |title=Happy Meals in Pyongyang? |work=Radio Free Asia |url=http://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/burger-10152010151052.html |access-date=15 January 2011 |archive-date=26 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110526032829/http://www.rfa.org/english/news/korea/burger-10152010151052.html/ |url-status=live }}

Kim met her future husband, Jang Song-thaek, when she was studying at Kim Il Sung University. She and Jang continued dating after he relocated to Wonsan, allegedly because the Kim family opposed their relationship. The two eventually married in 1972.

Kim and Jang had a daughter, Jang Kum-song (1977–2006), who lived overseas in Paris as an international student; she refused an order to return to Pyongyang and then reportedly committed suicide in September 2006 due to her parents' opposition to her relationship with her boyfriend.{{Cite news |last=Yi |first=Yeong-jong 이영종 |date=18 September 2006 |script-title=ko:파리의 김정일 조카 장금송 비운의 러브스토리 |language=ko |trans-title=Unlucky Love Story of Kim Jong-Il's Niece in Paris |work=JoongAng Ilbo |url=https://www.joongang.co.kr/article/2450717 |url-status=live |access-date=23 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220322191303/https://www.joongang.co.kr/article/2450717 |archive-date=22 March 2022}}

In the 2010s, Kim Kyong-hui was rumored to be either dead or very ill. According to a report by the Daily NK in August 2012, she has suffered from ill health due to alcoholism.{{Cite news |date=24 August 2012 |title=Alcohol a Threat to Kim Guardianship Role |work=Daily NK}} According to Paul Fischer, she has suffered from this disease every so often since at least the late 1970s. This has prompted at least one trip into China for rehabilitation.{{Cite book |last=Fischer |first=Paul |title=A Kim Jong-Il Production: The Extraordinary True Story of a Kidnapped Filmmaker, His Star Actress, and a Young Dictator's Rise to Power |date=2015 |publisher=Flatiron Books |location=New York |page=214}} It was suggested that she had a fatal stroke or a heart attack.{{Cite news |last=Hancocks |first=Paula |date=11 May 2015 |title=Kim Ordered Aunt Poisoned: N. Korean Defector |work=CNN |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2015/05/11/asia/north-korea-kim-aunt-poisoned/index.html |access-date=12 May 2015 |archive-date=13 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150513194839/http://edition.cnn.com/2015/05/11/asia/north-korea-kim-aunt-poisoned/index.html |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |last1=Karimi |first1=Faith |last2=Kim |first2=Jung-eun |last3=Kwon |first3=Judy |date=28 November 2014 |title=N Korea Source: Leader's Aunt Died After Husband Killed |work=CNN |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2014/11/28/world/asia/north-korea-leaders-aunt/index.html |access-date=12 May 2015 |archive-date=28 June 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150628040502/http://edition.cnn.com/2014/11/28/world/asia/north-korea-leaders-aunt/index.html |url-status=live }} Some reports claimed she had committed suicide. According to other reports, she underwent surgery for a brain tumour in 2013 and was left in a vegetative state.{{Cite news |last=Ryall |first=Julian |date=9 January 2014 |title=Kim Jong-un's Aunt 'in Vegetative State After Brain Surgery' |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/10560589/Kim-Jong-uns-aunt-in-vegetative-state-after-brain-surgery.html |access-date=12 May 2015 |archive-date=15 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150515004750/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/10560589/Kim-Jong-uns-aunt-in-vegetative-state-after-brain-surgery.html |url-status=live }}

On 8 December 2013, Jang was publicly expelled from the ruling Workers' Party of Korea. Jang was accused of factionalism, corruption, and a range of misbehaviour that included affairs with other women.{{Cite news |last=O'Carroll |first=Chad |date=9 December 2013 |title=Jang Song Thaek Purge Confirmed Amid Rumors of His Execution |work=NK News |url=http://www.nknews.org/2013/12/jang-song-thaek-purge-confirmed-amid-rumors-of-his-execution |url-status=live |access-date=9 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131211072845/http://www.nknews.org/2013/12/jang-song-thaek-purge-confirmed-amid-rumors-of-his-execution/ |archive-date=11 December 2013}}{{Cite news |date=9 December 2013 |title=Jang Arrested on State Television |work=Daily NK |url=http://renewal.dailynk.com/english/read_photo.php?num=11248&cataId=nk03100 |url-status=dead |access-date=9 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213001111/http://renewal.dailynk.com/english/read_photo.php?num=11248&cataId=nk03100 |archive-date=13 December 2013}} On 13 December, it was reported that he had been executed for treason.{{Cite web |last=Mansourov |first=Alexandre |date=13 December 2013 |title=North Korea: What Jang's Execution Means for the Future |url=https://www.38north.org/2013/12/amansourov121313/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220322122442/https://www.38north.org/2013/12/amansourov121313/ |archive-date=22 March 2022 |access-date=22 March 2022 |website=38 North}}{{Cite web |last=Gale |first=Alastair |date=13 December 2013 |title=What North Korea Said About Jang Song Thaek |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/korearealtime/2013/12/13/what-north-korea-said-about-jang-song-thaek |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140218061309/http://blogs.wsj.com/korearealtime/2013/12/13/what-north-korea-said-about-jang-song-thaek |archive-date=18 February 2014 |access-date=14 October 2014 |website=The Wall Street Journal Korea Realtime}}

On 14 December, the Korean Central News Agency released a roster of six top officials appointed to a national committee in charge of organizing a state funeral for Kim Kuk-tae, a former Workers' Party official. The roster included the name of Kim Kyong-hui, indicating she had survived the purge and remained in favour.{{Cite news |last=Choe |first=Sang-hun |date=15 December 2013 |title=North Korean Leader's Aunt Appears Unscathed |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/16/world/asia/kim-jong-uns-aunt-appears-to-survive-husbands-purge.html |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=22 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220401220152/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/16/world/asia/kim-jong-uns-aunt-appears-to-survive-husbands-purge.html |archive-date=1 April 2022}}{{Cite news |date=15 December 2013 |title=Kim Jong-un's Aunt Retains Position of Influence After Husband's Downfall |work=The Guardian |agency=Reuters |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/15/kim-jong-un-aunt-position-influence-husband |url-status=dead |access-date=15 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170305041049/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/15/kim-jong-un-aunt-position-influence-husband |archive-date=5 March 2017}}{{Cite news |date=15 December 2013 |title=North Korean Execution 'Will Not Alter Trade Goals' |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-25391160 |url-status=live |access-date=23 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220224223931/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-25391160 |archive-date=24 February 2022}}{{Cite news |last=Chung |first=Jane |date=15 December 2013 |title=North Korean Leader's Influential Aunt Remains in Power After Uncle Jang's Execution |work=Reuters |editor-last=Perry |editor-first=Michael |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-korea-north-idUSBRE9BE01T20131215 |url-status=live |access-date=23 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220224223927/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-korea-north-idUSBRE9BE01T20131215 |archive-date=24 February 2022}} The status of Kim Kyong-hui's relationship with Jang had been a subject of frequent speculation. Analysts believe that Jang and Kim Kyong-hui had been estranged. Yoon Sang-hyun, a National Assembly of South Korea deputy floor leader of the governing Saenuri Party, said that Kim had been "separated" from Jang and did not oppose his purge.

In 2015, an unnamed source, described as a high-ranking defector, claimed that Kim Jong Un had ordered Kim Kyong-hui to be poisoned. In February 2015 the South Korean National Intelligence Service stated she was still alive.{{Cite news |date=24 February 2015 |title=Kim Jong-un Aunt Is Still Alive, Says South Korean Intelligence |work=The Telegraph |agency=AFP |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/11431748/Kim-Jong-un-aunt-is-still-alive-says-South-Korean-intelligence.html |access-date=24 February 2015 |archive-date=24 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150224155150/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/11431748/Kim-Jong-un-aunt-is-still-alive-says-South-Korean-intelligence.html |url-status=live }} In 2016, historical footage of her was aired on North Korean television, indicating that she had not been removed from official history.{{Cite news |last=Kim |first=Myong-song |date=19 April 2016 |title=Kim Jong-un's Aunt Reappears in Propaganda |work=The Chosun Ilbo |url=http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2016/04/19/2016041900848.html |access-date=21 June 2016 |archive-date=23 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160623194614/http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2016/04/19/2016041900848.html |url-status=live }} In 2017, the South Korean Yonhap News Agency reported that she was alive but receiving medical treatment.{{Cite news |date=31 August 2017 |title=N. Korean Leader's Aunt Being Treated on Outskirts of Pyongyang: Sources |language=en |work=Yonhap News Agency |url=https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20170831011000315 |access-date=22 March 2022 |archive-date=6 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206052001/https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20170831011000315 |url-status=live }}

In January 2020, Kim appeared in North Korean media for the first time in over six years, attending a lunar new year concert with Kim Jong Un.{{Cite news |last=Hotham |first=Oliver |date=25 January 2020 |title=Kim Jong Un's aunt, once reported killed, makes first appearance in six years |publisher=NK News |url=https://www.nknews.org/2020/01/kim-jong-uns-aunt-once-reported-killed-makes-first-appearance-in-six-years/ |access-date=26 January 2020 |archive-date=26 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200126002928/https://www.nknews.org/2020/01/kim-jong-uns-aunt-once-reported-killed-makes-first-appearance-in-six-years/ |url-status=live }}

{{Portal|North Korea|Biography|Politics}}

• Kim Song-hye
• Kim Sol-song
• Kim Yo Jong
• Politics of North Korea
• Ro Song-sil
• Women in North Korea

{{Reflist}}

• Baird, Merrily (2003). [https://web.archive.org/web/20040824230850/http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/cpc-pubs/know_thy_enemy/baird.pdf Kim Chong-il's Erratic Decision-Making and North Korea's Strategic Culture]. In Barry R. Schneider & Jerrold M. Post (eds.), [http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/cpc-pubs/know_thy_enemy/Know Thy Enemy: Profiles of Adversary Leaders and Their Strategic Cultures]{{dead link|date=March 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}. USAF Counterproliferation Center: Publications, Research, & Education, WMD NBC counterproliferation electives syllabi; retrieved 19 September 2010.
• Mansourov, Alexandre. (2004). [http://www.brookings-tsinghua.cn/views/papers/fellows/oh20040601ch4.pdf Inside North Korea's black box: reversing the optics] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312234234/http://www.brookings-tsinghua.cn/views/papers/fellows/oh20040601ch4.pdf |date=12 March 2012 }}. The Brookings Institution; retrieved 19 September 2010.
• Madden, Michael (2010). [http://nkleadershipwatch.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/kim-kyong-hui-basic-bio.pdf Biographical Sketch of Kim Kyong-hui]. North Korea Leadership Watch; retrieved 19 September 2010.

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