Rumors remain rife in North Korea after the country’s media late last year disclosed images of children presumed to be those of Deputy Department Director Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Several people found themselves in trouble as rumors spread that the two children who appeared in broadcasts were Kim Yo Jong’s. However, the People’s Committee of South Pyongan province recently issued an extraordinary internal order to “leniently forgive people who spread rumors.”
“Some people are having a tough time after being dragged off by party organizations or even local branches of the Ministry of State Security to write self-criticism letters and the like as talk circulates about Comrade Kim Yo Jong and her children, but the party committee of South Pyongan province got directly involved on Feb. 7 and issued an internal order,” a source in South Pyongan province told Daily NK on Friday.
On Dec. 31 of last year, Korean Central Television ran a scene of Kim walking with two children during a report on New Year celebrations at Rungrado 1st of May Stadium.
According to the source, rumors quickly spread among Pyongsong residents that the two children who appeared in the broadcast were Kim’s children, though some residents were unsure about this.
Some Pyongsong residents ran afoul of the authorities for spreading rumors and were summoned by party organizations to write self-criticism letters, with suspects even dragged off to the Ministry of State Security in severe cases. The situation is ongoing.
“People were certain that the children belonged to Comrade Kim Yo Jong, even though the TV didn’t introduce them as such,” the source said. “Almost everyone said so, and even officials appeared unsure, and with the party and judicial agencies doing nothing to stop the talk, rumors that the children were Kim’s naturally continue.”
When the rumors began circulating, party and law enforcement organizations issued an internal order for officials and their families to “watch what they say and do and keep an eye on public opinion because the rumors could transcend simple interest to become big political problems.” In other words, officials took a wait-and-see approach rather than aggressively respond.
However, as rumors gradually spread about the so-called “Mount Paektu bloodline,’ including Kim Yo Jong’s children, the matter was reported to Pyongyang and some people were summoned by party organizations and the Ministry of State Security.
However, with South Pyongan province’s People Committee suddenly issuing an order to “forgive” people who spread rumors about Kim’s children on Feb. 7, all those in hot water were released or freed from restrictions, the source said.
People responded with surprise, the source said. “The Supreme Leader’s [Kim Jong Un] and Comrade Kim Yo Jong’s children are a sensitive matter, and we’d never seen the authorities tell officials not to punish people who spread rumors about them,” they said. “It’s quite surprising because such things usually get you dragged off immediately or subject to criticism.”
However, some people have criticized the rumors, saying the party never officially said they were Kim’s children and that people “shouldn’t mind whose children they are and instead raise their own children well,” the source said.
February 19, 2025 at 06:00AM
by DailyNK(North Korean Media)