Likely NK successor thinning ranks

Did you know the blue bands in NK's flag signify
sovereignty, peace and friendship? Not words
typically associated with the country.

Yesterday, we posted excerpts from a WEA-RLC Research and Analysis Report that explored what a change in leadership in North Korea will mean for persecuted Christians living in the communist nation.

Today, AsiaNews is reporting that Kim Jong-un, the like successor, is not waiting around for his father’s death to consolidate his power, and has begun purging government and party ranks under the guise of an anti-corruption campaign.

On Kim’s orders, police raided party offices and arrested party officials suspected of corruption. The Seoul-based North Korea Intellectuals Solidarity reports that 15 senior border officials were arrested and charged with bribery, smuggling activities and turning a blind eye to people fleeing the country.

"This is a purge for generational change . . .  . Senior officials are trembling with fear because they don't know where heads are going to roll," a spokesperson for the group said.

As feared in the WEA-RLC report, the young Kim is following in the footsteps of his elder, who reportedly had people executed in the 1990s every time problems proved too difficult to handle.

AsiaNews says the ruthlessness of the young Kim is probably why Kim Jong-il appointed him deputy party secretary and deputy president of the Central Military Commission, choosing him over other sons and pretenders to the throne of Pyongyang.

You can read the full story, “Kim the ‘third’ to thin out party ranks,” at AsiaNews.

Continue to pray for salvation of the Kims and safety for North Korean Christians. Pray that the words "sovereignty," "peace" and "friendship" become words that do, in fact, symbolize the country and its leaders' actions.