General Kim Kyong-hui (Hangul: 김경희; Hanja: 金敬姬; born 30 May 1946) is the daughter of the former leader of North Korea, Kim Il-sung and his first wife Kim Jong-suk, and the sister of the late leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-il. An important member of Kim Jong-il's inner circle of trusted friends and advisors,[1] she has been director of the Light Industry Department of the Workers' Party of Korea since 1988.[2] Her husband is Jang Sung-taek.
Kim Kyong-hui was born in Pyongyang on 30 May 1946, the last child of the marriage between Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-suk. After a brief period spent in Jilin Province of the People's Republic of China due to the Korean War, Kim Kyong-hui returned to Pyongyang with her brother, Kim Jong-il. She entered Kim Il-sung University in 1963, studying political economy. It was here she met Jang Sung-taek, and continued dating him also after he moved to Wonsan, allegedly because the Kim family opposed their relationship,[3] and the two eventually married in 1972. She attended the Kim Il-sung Higher Party School in 1966 and went to study at the Moscow State University in 1968.
Kim Kyong-hui's political career began in 1971 with a position in the Korean Democratic Women's Union, and in 1975 she was transferred to the post of vice-director of the International Liaison Department of the Workers' Party of Korea, promoted to first vice-director in 1976. It was the period when North Korea was establishing diplomatic relations with a number of capitalist countries, like Thailand and Singapore, as well as the United Nations; Kim Kyong-hui oversaw the placement of qualified diplomatic personnel during her tenure as International Department vice-director.[3]
In 1988, she was promoted to WPK Central Committee member and director of the Light Industry Department. In 1990, she was elected deputy to the Supreme People's Assembly for the first time. Her role was particularly significant as she led the Economic Policy Inspection Department, then again the Light Industry Department during the "Arduous March" period after Kim Il-sung’s death.
Kim Kyong-hui disappeared from the limelight in 2003, in the same period when Jang Sung-taek was apparently purged as well.[3] However, while her husband resurfaced with a high-level position in 2007, she did not appear in public until 2009, playing a more and more prominent role, accompanying Kim Jong-il to several inspection tours and attending official events.
On 27 September 2010, it was announced that she was made a general in the Korean People's Army.[4] This concurred with Kim Jong-un's promotion to the same rank. A day later, the 3rd Conference of the Workers’ Party elected her as a member of the Political Bureau which is the central organization of the party.
According to South Korean sources, she also worked as Kim Jong-il's personal aide.[5] Her influential position in North Korean echelons (also confirmed by Kenji Fujimoto) allowed her to maintain close relations with President Kim Yong-nam of the SPA Presidium, WPK Secretaries Choe Thae-bok and Kim Ki Nam, and Director Kim Yang-gon of the WPK United Front Department.[3] In addition, her post as head of the Light Industry Department gives her a prominent role in shaping North Korean economic policy as it is currently shifting its focus on developing light industry.[6]
In 2010, a hamburger restaurant owned entirely by Kim Kyong-hui opened in Pyongyang. Since burgers are considered American food, the restaurant does not market them as "burgers," instead calling them "minced meat and bread." It is the first hamburger franchise in Pyongyang.[7]
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