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| North Korean leader Kim Jong-un adjusts his glasses during a joint news conference with host President Moon Jae-in during the April 27 inter-Korean summit at the Panmunjeon truce village. / Yonhap |
By Oh Young-jin
Few would blame North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, if he (tries to) jump for joy.
This is not because he might win a Nobel Peace Prize (his father was upset when Kim Dae-jung won it alone after the 2000 inter-Korean summit) but because he is very popular among an overwhelming number of South Koreans, yes, the people of his "enemy state," which the North has vowed to unify on its terms.
Up to 80 percent held a positive view of Kim after the April 27 inter-Korean summit.
Considering Kim had frequently threatened the South with his nuclear weapons a short few months ago, the poll result was a shock
Discredited as he is, Hong Joon-pyo, leader of the main conservative opposition Liberty Korea Party, rued, "If the number holds, Kim could be elected as the next president of the Republic of Korea."
Following the summit, President Moon Jae-in's approval rating jump 7.4 percentage points to 77.4 percent in a survey ahead of his first year in office this week. That could be a record for a president at this time of tenure.
But that was still lower than Kim's rating. But one important point ― Kim's numbers were in response to whether they turned from negative to positive ― a low bar for switching.
The state-run broadcaster KBS poll, out May 1, showed 80 percent of respondents feeling positive about Kim, 22.3 percent saying "very much so." The internet newspaper Dailian's number was 74.4 percent, while broadcaster MBC had a higher 77.5 percent.
These polls did not ask about U.S. President Donald Trump, who is taking the flak for pressuring Seoul on trade, burden sharing for its military presence and other points.
These numbers came after the full-day live-broadcast coverage of the Moon-Kim summit at the Panmunjeom truce village, which half of South Koreans watched.
The coverage showed the North Korean dictator's human side ― Kim making jokes, holding hands with Moon to cross the inter-Korean border, accompanying his wife Ri Sol-ju to dinner and holding a joint press conference.
Overnight, Kim's image of the butcher, who purged and killed hundreds including his half brother and uncle, was replaced with one of the leader of a normal nation.
Of course, the southerners' strong desire for peace has played a key role. Then, there is only dwindling slice from people who experienced the 1950-1953 North-initiated Korean War or bloody clashes afterward.
If the summit was a deliberate PR show from the North, it is nothing short of a smashing success.
But Kim should not be complacent. In the SNS-crazed South, the fate of public figures can be ruined very quickly by one unwise remark or ill-conceived behavior.
If he wants to remain popular, he should behave. Could he?
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