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Tue, September 26, 2023 | 02:51
-------------------------
‘Kim Jong-un started smoking as a teenager’
김정일 죽기 직전까지… 김정은에게 대물림?
Posted : 2012-01-16 13:10
Updated : 2012-01-16 13:10
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Signs are that North Korea’s new leader Kim Jong-un is a smoker. Both his predecessor and father Kim Jong-il, and grandfather Kim Il-sung, founder of the communist state; were also smokers. The former died of a heart attack on Dec. 17 last year at the age of 69, and the latter died of a similar heart failure in 1994 when he was 82.

Since his father’s death a month ago, a few field trips by the heir, Jong-un, thought to be in his late 20s, have been made. But some recent images of the successor and his father indicate that the young leader is a smoker.

A documentary about the “Great Successor’s” virtues, titled “Inheriting (Mt.) Baekdu’s Seongun (military-first) revolutionary legacy,” showed an ashtray and binoculars lying on the table in front of the new leader who was accompanying his father to the country's satellite command center in April 2009. The documentary was aired by the North’s state television on Jan. 8.

In addition, there was testimony that Jong-un already smoked when he was a teenager.

Kenji Hujimoto, a former Japanese chef for the late Kim Jong-il, was reported to have said that Jong-un began to smoke cigarettes and drink liquor when he was around 15. He said Jong-un sometimes asked him to share cigarettes he had.

Hujimoto called Jong-un “one who loves to smoke,” adding that he likes to smoke Yves Saint Laurent, among others.

Both his father and grandfather are known for their love for cigarettes.

Doctors advised them to quit smoking for their health, but they did not stop.

Mutsuko Miki, wife of former Japanese Prime Minister Takeo Miki who visited Pyongyang in June 1994, a month before his death, said Kim Il-sung showed few signs of illness but was a heavy smoker.

His son, Kim Jong-il, was no exception. A picture presumed to have been taken in November or December last year showed an ashtray lying on the table in front of him during a field trip.


Reports say the North Korean authorities produced cigarettes exclusively for Kim Il-sung and his son, Jong-il.



김정일 죽기 직전까지… 김정은에게 대물림?
북한의 새 지도자 김정은 노동당 중앙군사위원회 부위원장이 김일성 주석과 김정일 국방위원장처럼 담배를 피우는 것으로 보인다. 지난해 12월 김 위원장의 사망 이후 김 부위원장의 공개활동이 많이 공개되지 않았지만 그가 담배를 피운다고 추정할 수 있는 간접증거가 벌써 포착되고 있다. 북한 조선중앙TV가 지난 8일 방영한 김 부위원장의 기록영화 `백두의 선군혁명 위업을 계승하시어'를 보면 김 부위원장이 군사훈련을 참관하는 장면에서 그의 바로 앞에 있는 탁자에 재떨이와 쌍안경이 놓여 있는 것을 볼 수 있다. 김 부위원장이 10대 시절에도 흡연을 했다는 증언도 있다. 김 위원장의 요리사를 지낸 일본인 후지모토 겐지는 `북한의 후계자 왜 김정은인가'라는 책에서 김 부위원장이 10대 중반부터 술과 담배를 시작했고 "V하자"면서 자신에게 담배를 얻어 피우기도 했다고 밝혔다. 후지모토씨는 김 부위원장을 `애연가'라고 표현하고 그가 좋아했던 담배로는 `이브생로랑'을 소개했다. 김 부위원장의 할아버지 김 주석과 아버지 김 위원장의 `담배 사랑'은 널리 알려져 있다. 두 사람은 건강하려면 금연해야 한다는 의사의 권고에도 사망 직전까지 담배를 끊지 않았다. 1994년 6월 북한을 방문한 미키 다케오 전 일본 총리의 부인 미키 무쓰코 여사는 사망 한달 전 김 주석의 인상에 대해 "병색은 전혀 찾아볼 수 없었으나 담배는 많이 피우고 있었다"고 전한 바 있다. 김 위원장의 경우도 사망 직전인 작년 11∼12월 현지지도 사진에서 탁자 위에 재떨이가 놓여있는 장면이 공개됐다. 특히 북한 당국은 김일성·김정일 부자의 전용담배도 생산한 것으로 알려져 있다.
 
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