N. Korea's state media silent on birthday of leader Kim's grandmother

North Korea's founding leader Kim Il-sung, center, his wife Kim Jong-suk and their son Kim Jong-il, are seen in this photo carried by the Korean Central Broadcasting Committee, Jan. 2, 2020. Yonhap

North Korea's state media made no mention of the birthday of the long-revered grandmother of leader Kim Jong-un on Wednesday as the current leader seeks to reduce his reliance on his predecessors for authority.

The Rodong Sinmun, North Korea's most widely read newspaper, has yet to report on the late Kim Jong-suk's birthday, which falls on Dec. 24.

As the first wife of North Korea's late founder Kim Il-sung and mother of former leader Kim Jong-il, the late father of Kim Jong-un, Kim Jong-suk had long been the only deified woman among the Kim dynasty's "Paektu bloodline."

She was also described as a "female hero" in the fight against Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula and one of the "three generals of Mount Paektu" that includes Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il.

The Rodong Sinmun has published articles annually on her birthday to reflect on the late figure, describing her as the role model of the people.

Last year, the newspaper carried an article touting the late Kim as the "great mother of revolution."

But this year, the North's state media has no mention of Kim Jong-suk's birthday. There were also no media reports on the Sept. 22 anniversary commemorating her death.

North Korea's stance of maintaining a low profile for the current leader's grandmother appears to align with Kim Jong-un's efforts to strengthen his status as a stand-alone leader while reducing the regime's idolization of his predecessors.

Since last year, the North has not referred to the birthday of Kim Il-sung as the Day of the Sun and stopped using its "juche," or self-reliance, calendar — a system of numbering the years that symbolize the late founder.