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Kim Yo-jong, North Korea's de facto second-in-command, has been out of the public eye for more than a month, leaving the South Korean government and experts scrambling to find out what has happened to the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong-un.
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| Kim Yo-jong / Korea Times file |
According to the Ministry of Unification, Kim Yo-jong has not made a public appearance since July 27, when she attended an event for the 67th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice Agreement. Even though she is a member of Pyongyang's politburo and the political bureau of the ruling Workers' Party's Central Committee, she attended neither of their recent meetings.
The ministry remains cautious about the issue, saying it is not proper to make assumptions regarding a specific figure's whereabouts.
"Kim Yo-jong's absence seems to have to do with the North's political considerations," said Shin Beom-chul, the director of the Center for Diplomacy and Security at the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy.
"The alleged power delegation has elevated Kim Yo-jong's status in the South, and the North appears to be keeping possible consequences in check as it is afraid that North Korea-related information could flow into the North via China and it could become a fear factor to Kim Jong-un's dictatorship."
While Kim Yo-jong has been absent from public duties, her older brother, who also disappeared from public eye for nearly three weeks earlier this year, has recently been appearing in public frequently.
Last month, the North Korean leader made public appearances on eight occasions, compared with 20 times from January to June of this year.
According to the totalitarian state, Kim Yo-jong has responsibility for the North's policy toward South Korea and the United States, but her duties have not been activated, keeping her away from public view, said Park Won-gon, a professor of international politics at Handong Global University.
"She is in charge of South Korean and U.S. affairs, but the North is recently committed to dealing with fallout from floods and typhoons, with Kim Jong-un and other officials visiting disaster-hit areas. In that respect, Kim Yo-jong is not seen publicly," Park said.
Park also said the North's "unsuccessful" aggression in June against the South may have led to her absence. Angered by the South's "failure" to stop anti-North leaflets sent across the border by North Korean defectors and activists, the North demolished the inter-Korean liaison office in Gaeseong, June 16.
"Kim Yo-jong led the anti-South offensive, including threats of military actions and sending propaganda leaflets across the border, but it was suspended abruptly by her brother, which cannot be seen as a success, and she may have taken responsibility for the aggression," he said.
However, the experts said she would return by Oct. 10, when the country plans to mark the 75th anniversary of its ruling party.
"The celebration is a really important event to the North, so she has to show up. Otherwise, it means something has happened to her," Shin said.
