By Kim Hyo-jin
Kim Jong-nam, the eldest son of former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, was once considered a natural heir of North Korea's family dynasty.
After his half-brother Kim Jong-un took power following the sudden death of their father in 2011, however, he and his family had to live abroad to avoid possible persecution. He had long been considered a potential threat to his brother's dictatorship until his death, Monday.
He was born in 1971 as the eldest son of Kim Jong-il and actress Song Hye-rim. He is an older half-brother of Kim Jong-un, born between the same father and his third wife Ko Yong-hui.
His upbringing was largely in secret due to what is believed to be Kim Il-sung's disapproval of his son's relationship with Song, who was then a married woman.
When he was young, Jong-nam was tutored at home by Song Hye-rang, his aunt who received asylum in the U.S. later in 1996, which weakened his positioning as a natural heir to Kim Jong-il. He left the country at the age of nine to Russia and attended international schools there and in Switzerland.
Though he studied political science and diplomacy at the University of Geneva, he reportedly had a keen interest in information technology too. It led him to assume the chair position of North Korea's computer committee, a body tasked with devising the country's information technology policies in 1998.
With the onset of Kim Jong-il's era since 1994, the assumption grew that Jong-nam, the eldest son of Kim Jong-il, will be his natural heir. But things turned sour after Jong-nam was caught and expelled by the Japanese authorities following an attempt to enter the country illegally with a fake Dominican Republic passport in 2001. He then told authorities that he was trying to go to Disneyland in Tokyo.
The incident hugely embarrassed his home country as it was unveiled that key North Korean figures travel with fake identification. It is viewed as one of the main reasons why he fell out of his father's favor, according to North Korea experts.
After he was cast aside from the center of power, Jong-nam had long been in de facto exile, mainly in the Chinese territory of Macau. He was believed to have been under China's protection.
Kim was viewed as critical of the North Korean regime. He publicly was opposed to "hereditary transfer of power of three generations" during an interview with Asahi Shimbun in 2010, a move seen as a challenge to the then soon-to-be top leader Kim Jong-un.
Amid high speculation that Kim Jong-nam was assassinated on the order of his half-brother Kim Jong-un, who intended to consolidate his leadership, Cheong Seong-chang, a senior researcher at the Sejong Institute and a North Korea expert, raised the possibility that a recent report that Jong-nam tried to seek asylum might have infuriated Kim Jong-un.
Weekly Kyunghyang reported last Saturday that the South Korean government was helping Kim Jong-nam to exile in 2012. The National Intelligence Service (NIS), the country's spy agency, intended to escort him to South Korea but he wanted to go to either the U.S. or a European country.
But the negotiation between the U.S. and Kim fell through because the U.S. did not view him as an asset in intelligence while he asked for overly special treatment, the magazine said.
"It was the first time that Kim Jong-nam's attempt at exile was unveiled. It could have angered Kim Jong-un," Cheong said.
But some say the killing of Kim Jong-nam has long been a mission for the Kim Jong-un regime.
Rep. Kim Byung-kee of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and a member of the National Assembly's Intelligence Committee, quoted the NIS head, Wednesday saying, "It has been a standing order since Kim Jong-un took power."
He added, "The head of the NIS said there was an attempt in 2012 and afterwards, Kim Jong-nam sent a letter to Jong-un, begging for his and his family's lives."
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| Late Kim Jong-nam |
After his half-brother Kim Jong-un took power following the sudden death of their father in 2011, however, he and his family had to live abroad to avoid possible persecution. He had long been considered a potential threat to his brother's dictatorship until his death, Monday.
He was born in 1971 as the eldest son of Kim Jong-il and actress Song Hye-rim. He is an older half-brother of Kim Jong-un, born between the same father and his third wife Ko Yong-hui.
His upbringing was largely in secret due to what is believed to be Kim Il-sung's disapproval of his son's relationship with Song, who was then a married woman.
When he was young, Jong-nam was tutored at home by Song Hye-rang, his aunt who received asylum in the U.S. later in 1996, which weakened his positioning as a natural heir to Kim Jong-il. He left the country at the age of nine to Russia and attended international schools there and in Switzerland.
Though he studied political science and diplomacy at the University of Geneva, he reportedly had a keen interest in information technology too. It led him to assume the chair position of North Korea's computer committee, a body tasked with devising the country's information technology policies in 1998.
With the onset of Kim Jong-il's era since 1994, the assumption grew that Jong-nam, the eldest son of Kim Jong-il, will be his natural heir. But things turned sour after Jong-nam was caught and expelled by the Japanese authorities following an attempt to enter the country illegally with a fake Dominican Republic passport in 2001. He then told authorities that he was trying to go to Disneyland in Tokyo.
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The incident hugely embarrassed his home country as it was unveiled that key North Korean figures travel with fake identification. It is viewed as one of the main reasons why he fell out of his father's favor, according to North Korea experts.
After he was cast aside from the center of power, Jong-nam had long been in de facto exile, mainly in the Chinese territory of Macau. He was believed to have been under China's protection.
Kim was viewed as critical of the North Korean regime. He publicly was opposed to "hereditary transfer of power of three generations" during an interview with Asahi Shimbun in 2010, a move seen as a challenge to the then soon-to-be top leader Kim Jong-un.
Amid high speculation that Kim Jong-nam was assassinated on the order of his half-brother Kim Jong-un, who intended to consolidate his leadership, Cheong Seong-chang, a senior researcher at the Sejong Institute and a North Korea expert, raised the possibility that a recent report that Jong-nam tried to seek asylum might have infuriated Kim Jong-un.
Weekly Kyunghyang reported last Saturday that the South Korean government was helping Kim Jong-nam to exile in 2012. The National Intelligence Service (NIS), the country's spy agency, intended to escort him to South Korea but he wanted to go to either the U.S. or a European country.
But the negotiation between the U.S. and Kim fell through because the U.S. did not view him as an asset in intelligence while he asked for overly special treatment, the magazine said.
"It was the first time that Kim Jong-nam's attempt at exile was unveiled. It could have angered Kim Jong-un," Cheong said.
But some say the killing of Kim Jong-nam has long been a mission for the Kim Jong-un regime.
Rep. Kim Byung-kee of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea and a member of the National Assembly's Intelligence Committee, quoted the NIS head, Wednesday saying, "It has been a standing order since Kim Jong-un took power."
He added, "The head of the NIS said there was an attempt in 2012 and afterwards, Kim Jong-nam sent a letter to Jong-un, begging for his and his family's lives."
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