Kim Il Sung, Chairman; Kim Jong Il, Chairman of the National Defense Commission; and Kim Jong Un, General Secretary – Kim Yong Nam, the former Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People’s Assembly who held key positions across three generations of North Korean leadership, passed away on the 3rd.
On the 4th, the ruling party’s official newspaper Rodong Sinmun reported to all party members and citizens that Comrade Kim Yong Nam, a distinguished revolutionary of the older generation who made outstanding contributions to the glorious history of our party and state, died at the age of 97 from multiple organ failure due to cancer.
The newspaper stated that he had been receiving treatment for colon cancer since June of last year. It described Kim’s life as brilliant, dedicated to the revolution with unwavering loyalty and exceptional capability, having earned the highest honors in service to the party and leadership.
Kim’s funeral will be conducted as a state ceremony, with General Secretary Kim in attendance. The State Funeral Committee includes high-ranking officials such as Prime Minister Park Tae-sung and Choe Ryung Hae, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People’s Assembly.
According to the newspaper, the public mourning period will be held on the 4th from 9 AM to 7 PM, with the funeral procession scheduled for 9 AM on the 5th.
In the early hours of the 4th, at 1 AM, General Secretary Kim visited the Sejang Hall in Pyongyang’s Potonggang District, where Kim Yong Nam’s body is laid in state. He placed a wreath bearing his name and expressed his deep condolences. Senior officials from the party and government also attended the ceremony.
Kim Yong Nam served in key positions within the Workers’ Party International Department and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs throughout the eras of Kim Il Sung, Kim Jong Il, and Kim Jong Un. He retired from public life in 2019 due to advanced age. Notably, he is known as a figure who never experienced demotion or “revolutionization,” a process that most high-ranking officials undergo at least once during power transitions.
Furthermore, during the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, he led a high-level North Korean delegation to South Korea, where he met with former President Moon Jae-in alongside Kim Yo-jong, the General Secretary’s sister.