Kim Yong-sun

Kim Yong-sun (1934 – 26 October 2003) was a North Korean politician. At the time of his death, he was vice-chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland. He was reported to have been killed in a car accident.[1] He also held a position as a secretary (subordinate to the general secretary) of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK).[2]

For the South Korean singer Kim Yong-sun, see Solar (singer).
Kim Yong-sun
Born1934
South Pyongan, Korea
Died26 October 2003 (aged 68–69)
Pyongyang, North Korea
OccupationVice-Chairman of the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland
Political partyWorkers' Party of Korea
Korean name
Chosŏn'gŭl
김용순
Hancha
金容淳
Revised RomanizationGim Yongsun
McCune–ReischauerKim Yongsun

Career

Kim was born in 1934 in South Pyongan, when the Korean Peninsula was still under Japanese rule.[1][3] He was elevated to the WPK's Central Committee in October 1980.[4] He was a recipient of the Kim Il-sung Order, the highest decoration of the North Korean government.[1]

According to author Don Oberdorfer, he was flamboyant and had been demoted in the mid-1980s for decadent behavior. However, his career had been saved because of his friendship with Kim Jong-il and his sister Kim Kyong-hui.[5]

Kim played an instrumental role in the planning of the first Inter-Korean summit between Kim Dae-jung and Kim Jong-il in June 2000.[1] He came to the South in September that year as part of an official Northern delegation, and inspected POSCO facilities in Pohang; he was the first secretary of the WPK to take an inspection tour in the South since Ho Dam in 1985.[2] After reportedly being involved in a car accident in June 2003, he was hospitalised, and succumbed to his injuries on 23 October 2003.[1]

References
  1. Len, Samuel (2003-10-28), "Pyongyang official dies of crash injuries", The New York Times, retrieved 2010-06-08
  2. "김위원장 "추석에 서울 다녀오라"", Kyunghyang Shinmun, 2000-09-13, retrieved 2010-06-08
  3. Bak, Hyeon-min (2008-11-18), "김정일 "김용순 안죽었으면 지금 한몫 할 것"", The Daily NK, retrieved 2010-06-08
  4. "북한 김정일 위원장 '김용순 살아있었으면...'/Kim Jong-il: 'If Kim Yong-sun had not died ...'", Seoul Broadcasting System, 2008-11-17, retrieved 2010-06-08
  5. Oberdorfer, Don; Carlin, Robert (2014). The Two Koreas: A Contemporary History. Basic Books. pp. 185–186. ISBN 9780465031238.
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