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September 8, 2008
Is Kim Jong-il Dead?
No one is surprised by the use of look-alikes in tyrannies (Saddam Hussein, Mao, Stalin, et al). But would a look-alike continue to operate five years after the death of the tyrant?
Such is the claim of Toshimitsu Shigemura (重村智計), veteran Korea-watcher at Waseda University. His claim is that Kim Jong-Il died of diabetes in 2003. Read it for yourself. His book (in Japanese) in which he makes the claim may be found here.
An interesting comment here from In From the Cold.
This, from the days when there was (perhaps) some food to be processed in North Korean factories, from the valuable repository of such videos, the Songunblog:
Lending credence to the illness/imminent death/already deceased rumors, let's not forget that just a year ago, Kim Jong-Nam, one of Jong-il's sons, returned to Pyongyang and a relatively executive Intelligence position, after apparent disfavor and father-imposed "exile." In other words, in preparation for the struggle for power to come?
Comments
Wonderful news, if it's true!
We should also remember there's plenty of snakes down that hole.
Posted by: Bob ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.asiabizblog.com/nav-commenters.gif)
at September 9, 2008 4:34 PM
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