http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...isoner-amnesty-for-Kim-Jong-ils-birthday.html
North Korea announces prisoner amnesty for Kim Jong-il's birthday
North Korea said on Tuesday it will issue special pardons for convicts, a rare move that appeared to be aimed at boosting the popularity of young new leader Kim Jong-un as he attempts to fill his late father's shoes.
Kim Jong Un, Kim Jong Il's youngest son and successor, salutes during the funeral for his father
North Korea announces prisoner amnesty for Kim Jong-il's birthday Photo: AP
8:50AM GMT 10 Jan 2012
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Efforts to show Kim is firmly in control have provided a drumbeat of news reports in state media since his father, Kim Jong-il, died Dec. 17.
On Tuesday, the Korean Central News Agency reported that North Korea's top military officers again swore fervent pledges of loyalty, vowing to become human "rifles and bombs" to defend Kim Jong-un, who was recently appointed as the military's supreme commander.
The pardons, to be issued beginning Feb. 1, are to commemorate Kim Jong-il's 70th birthday in February and the 100th anniversary of the birth of his father, North Korea founder Kim Il-sung, in April.
KCNA did not say what sorts of crimes would be pardoned or how many inmates would be freed.
A U.N. envoy on human rights in North Korea said last year that the country is estimated to hold up to 200,000 people in political prison camps. The North has denied the existence of such gulags.
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The pardons will be the first such dispensations in more than six years. An analyst said the measure is aimed at winning public confidence for Kim Jong-un as the country struggles to revive its troubled economy.
"Public sentiments aren't very good, so the authorities aimed to appease them" with the pardons, said Kim Kwang-in, a researcher at the Seoul-based North Korea Strategy Center.
North Korea occasionally marks significant holidays by granting amnesties, and Pyongyang has promoted this year's Kim Il-sung centenary as a significant milestone in the country's history. South Korea's Unification Ministry says North Korea last conducted such a special pardon in August 2005 to mark the 60th anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japan's colonial rule.
The military rally for Kim Jong-un was held on Monday at a Pyongyang mausoleum for Kim Jong-il, according to KCNA. Top military officers and ordinary soldiers pledged to "remain true" to Kim Jong-un's leadership and shouted slogans such as "Devoted defence of Kim Jong-un," according to KCNA. Troops later paraded through a plaza, it said.
"We will build a ten thousands-fold bulwark for protecting the supreme commander and become rifles and bombs to serve as Kim Jong-un first-line lifeguards and Kim Jong-un first-line death-defying corps," said Ri Yong Ho, chief of the military's general staff.
North Korea has staged similar rallies vowing to unite around Kim Jong-un and uphold his father's "military-first policy." On a massive public memorial for the elder Kim on Dec. 29, North Korea declared Kim Jong-un as "supreme leader" of the ruling Workers' Party, military and the country.
The process to extend the Kim dynasty into a third generation draws keen attention worldwide as North Korea grapples with chronic food shortages and remains locked in a long-running standoff over its nuclear programme.
Pyongyang and Washington recently met for talks on food aid and how to restart nuclear disarmament talks, but those discussions were suspended after Kim Jong-il's death.
The Korean peninsula is officially at state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea to deter potential North Korea aggression.
North Korea announces prisoner amnesty for Kim Jong-il's birthday
North Korea said on Tuesday it will issue special pardons for convicts, a rare move that appeared to be aimed at boosting the popularity of young new leader Kim Jong-un as he attempts to fill his late father's shoes.
Kim Jong Un, Kim Jong Il's youngest son and successor, salutes during the funeral for his father
North Korea announces prisoner amnesty for Kim Jong-il's birthday Photo: AP
8:50AM GMT 10 Jan 2012
CommentsComments
Efforts to show Kim is firmly in control have provided a drumbeat of news reports in state media since his father, Kim Jong-il, died Dec. 17.
On Tuesday, the Korean Central News Agency reported that North Korea's top military officers again swore fervent pledges of loyalty, vowing to become human "rifles and bombs" to defend Kim Jong-un, who was recently appointed as the military's supreme commander.
The pardons, to be issued beginning Feb. 1, are to commemorate Kim Jong-il's 70th birthday in February and the 100th anniversary of the birth of his father, North Korea founder Kim Il-sung, in April.
KCNA did not say what sorts of crimes would be pardoned or how many inmates would be freed.
A U.N. envoy on human rights in North Korea said last year that the country is estimated to hold up to 200,000 people in political prison camps. The North has denied the existence of such gulags.
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Mourning magpies 'broke news of Kim Jong-il's death'
09 Jan 2012
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09 Jan 2012
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08 Jan 2012
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08 Jan 2012
South Korea reaches out to North Korea after Kim Jong-il death
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The pardons will be the first such dispensations in more than six years. An analyst said the measure is aimed at winning public confidence for Kim Jong-un as the country struggles to revive its troubled economy.
"Public sentiments aren't very good, so the authorities aimed to appease them" with the pardons, said Kim Kwang-in, a researcher at the Seoul-based North Korea Strategy Center.
North Korea occasionally marks significant holidays by granting amnesties, and Pyongyang has promoted this year's Kim Il-sung centenary as a significant milestone in the country's history. South Korea's Unification Ministry says North Korea last conducted such a special pardon in August 2005 to mark the 60th anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japan's colonial rule.
The military rally for Kim Jong-un was held on Monday at a Pyongyang mausoleum for Kim Jong-il, according to KCNA. Top military officers and ordinary soldiers pledged to "remain true" to Kim Jong-un's leadership and shouted slogans such as "Devoted defence of Kim Jong-un," according to KCNA. Troops later paraded through a plaza, it said.
"We will build a ten thousands-fold bulwark for protecting the supreme commander and become rifles and bombs to serve as Kim Jong-un first-line lifeguards and Kim Jong-un first-line death-defying corps," said Ri Yong Ho, chief of the military's general staff.
North Korea has staged similar rallies vowing to unite around Kim Jong-un and uphold his father's "military-first policy." On a massive public memorial for the elder Kim on Dec. 29, North Korea declared Kim Jong-un as "supreme leader" of the ruling Workers' Party, military and the country.
The process to extend the Kim dynasty into a third generation draws keen attention worldwide as North Korea grapples with chronic food shortages and remains locked in a long-running standoff over its nuclear programme.
Pyongyang and Washington recently met for talks on food aid and how to restart nuclear disarmament talks, but those discussions were suspended after Kim Jong-il's death.
The Korean peninsula is officially at state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea to deter potential North Korea aggression.
