Kim Jong-il has 7-year-old son

By Kim Young-jin

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has a 7-year-old son with his concubine and former secretary, a lawmaker here said Friday, citing a high-ranking Chinese official.

Rep. Park Sun-young of the Liberty Forward Party told Yonhap News Agency that she was also informed that leader Kim and Kim Ok, thought to be 47, were married two years ago.

Park, who sits on the National Assembly’s Committee for Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification, visited China last month.

Kim Ok is thought to have lived with leader Kim since his late fourth wife, Ko Yong-hui, died. She is often referred to as the communist state’s de facto “first lady” because of her access to the mercurial leader.

Park added, "Kim Ok right to the end opposed last year's sinking of the (South Korean warship) Cheonan and is relatively moderate."

A Seoul-led investigation last May determined that the North had sunk the Cheonan with a sneak torpedo attack, killing 46.

The lawmaker said the dovish Kim Ok continues to play an important role in the regime, attending all meetings involving the leader.

In 2008, when Kim Jong-il reportedly suffered a stroke, she is thought to have played the role of regent until he recovered.

Seoul officials have said the rumors are difficult to verify, given speculation about the marriage has long abounded.

If confirmed, the son would be the North Korean leader’s youngest son. The next youngest would be Kim Jong-un, the heir to power, thought to be no older than 29.

The source also said that Ri Je-gang, the high-ranking official who the North said died in a car accident last year, was actually killed for opposing the regime’s purported plans to sink the Cheonan.

김정일 7세 아들 있다: 박선영 의원

북한 김정일 국방위원장이 그의 실질적 부인으로 알려진 김옥과 2년 전 정식으로 결혼했으며 두 사람 사이에 7세 아들이 있다는 주장이 11일 제기됐다. 또 김옥은 천안함 폭침을 반대하는 등 온건파라고 전해졌다.

국회 외교통상통일위 박선영 의원은 이날 연합뉴스와의 통화에서 "중국 대북 정보 계통의 고위층 인사로부터 이러한 얘기를 들었다"고 주장했다.

또 "김옥이 지난해 천안함 폭침 계획을 반대하는 등 상대적으로 온건파라고 한다"며 "김옥은 김 위원장이 참석하지 않는 회의를 비롯해 모든 회의에 다 참석한다고 들었다"고 말했다.

박 의원은 리제강 전 노동당 조직지도부 제1부부장의 사망에 대해 "사인이 교통사고로 알려졌으나 실제로는 김옥과 함께 천안함 폭침을 반대하다가 죽었다고 들었다"고 주장했다.

정부당국자는 이와 관련해 "두 사람의 결혼설은 사실 여부를 확인하기 어려운 사안"이라며 "개인적으로는 신빙성이 떨어진다고 판단한다"고 말했다.