Kim Jong Il Reportedly Staying in Wonsan
Lee, Minhwan
Ilbo, Kim Jong Il has been at his villa in Wonsan since mid-May.
Intelligence authorities in Seoul have been aware of Kim's extended stay
outside the capital since late last month.
A source familiar with the state of affairs in the North told Joongang on
the 4th, "It has been confirmed that Kim Jong Il has vacated Pyongyang, and
the intelligence authorities now maintain that Kim has been staying in
Wonsan."
Another North Korean source abroad apparently reported, "Other North Korean
diplomats travelling to Beijing have hinted at the fact that Chairman Kim is
not in Pyongyang."
It has been suggested that if Kim is staying in Wonsan, he must have
returned there after completing his onsite inspections in mid-May, or that
he may even have failed to complete the visits at all. He was reported in
the North Korea media to have finished all the inspections; the reports were
accompanied by photos.
If Kim Jong Il has been staying in Wonsan for more than a month, it is
probable that he has been staying at Hyangsan First Villa. This place is
well-known as the site of one of Kim's personal villas. It is also adjacent
to the well-known Wonsan Songdowon Beach, which was reconstructed in the
mid-1990s. In addition to Kim's personal villa, buildings for family members
and acquaintances can be found there.
According to the North Korean media, the number of publicized onsite visits
made by Kim last month was four. The Chosun Central Broadcast, in a report
on the 25th of last month, maintained that Kim had visited a total of around
100 places in the first six months of this year.
The South Korean Ministry of Unification said on the same day that it
believed the number of field visits made by Kim to be 77, a significant
increase on last year. Kim, who has apparently been doing an average of 10
visits per month until late June, can be expected to have reduced the number
of visits since then.
North Korean media outlets tend to briefly report the news of Kim's onsite
visits within two or three days of their occurrence, but recently it has not
been uncommon for the outlets to report the news within a single day.
The news of Kim's attendance at an arts performance held by the families of
the No. 264 Unit was reported on June 4th, and his visit to the Dongbong
Collective Farm in Hamju, South Hamkyung Province was made official on the
7th. His visit to the No. 7 Infantry Division of the North Korean Army's
Eastern Front was reported on the 14th, while his visit to the Hamheung
Theater was reported on the 15th.
Among these, intelligence authorities noted that the publicity photo of Kim
from his visit to the No. 7 Division could be an altered version of a photo
taken during his visit to the No. 851 unit in April. Both units are known to
be located in Anbyeon, Kangwon Province.