National Defence Commission of North Korea

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North Korea
This article is part of the series: Politics and government of North Korea

Constitution Juche Eternal President: Kim Il-sung National Defense Commission Chairman: Kim Jong-il Government Premier: Kim Yong-il Supreme People's Assembly President: Kim Yong-nam Subdivisions Judiciary Political parties Workers' Party of Korea Elections: 2003, 2008 Korean reunification Human rights Foreign relations Songun policy
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The National Defence Commission of North Korea (NDC) is defined by the 1998 constitution as “the highest guiding organ of the military and the managing organ of military matters.” The Chairman of the NDC controls the armed forces and, in this state where the military pre-dominates, is the most powerful position in the country. It is currently held by Kim Jong Il.

In April 2007, Kim Yŏngch'un (김영춘/金永春) was elected Vice Chairman (Korean: 부위원장 Pu-wiwŏnjang).^[1] Vice Marshal Jo Myong-Rok is First Vice Chairman. Other members as of October 2007 include General Ri Myong-su and Vice Marshal Kim Il-chol. ^[2]

[edit] Chairman

The Chairman of the National Defence Commission of North Korea is the supreme commander of the military forces of the state and the most powerful person in the government of North Korea. According to law, the Chairman has the "highest administrative authority" of any official, and the post was confirmed in 1998 as the "highest office of state." The Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) elects the Chairman for a period of five years. The election is held immediately subsequent to the election of a new People's Assembly.

The current Chairman is Kim Jong-il, who is also the General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea. The SPA, all of whose members belong to the Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland which is in turn dominated by the Workers' Party of Korea, first elected him as Chairman on 9 April 1993 in an election where he ran unopposed. He has since been re-elected in 1998 and 2003, although the outcome was predetermined and he controlled the election.

There is debate as to whether "highest office of state" should be considered equivalent to head of state. Kim Il-sung, the deceased leader of North Korea, has been declared Eternal President but it appears that the office is a facet of his extensive cult of personality. The Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, who handles the diplomatic functions that a head of state might normally undertake, is also sometimes considered the head of state. North Korea's constitutional arrangements are often unclear to outside observers and it is difficult to determine the Chairman's official standing. However, the Chairman is both in law and in practice the most powerful member of the North Korean government.