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General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea

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The general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (Korean: 조선로동당 총비서) is the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the ruling party in North Korea, and the country's supreme leader. Party rules stipulate that the party congress elects the general secretary. The party conference and the Central Committee are empowered to remove and elect the party leader. The general secretary is ex officio Chairman of the WPK Central Military Commission and leads the work of the secretariat.[1] Additionally, the general secretary is by right of office member of the WPK Presidium, the WPK Politburo and the WPK Secretariat.

General Secretary of the
Workers' Party of Korea
조선로동당 총비서
Emblem of the General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea
Incumbent
Kim Jong Un
since 11 April 2012[note 1]
Workers' Party of Korea
StyleComrade (동지)
(formal)
Type
ResidenceGovernment Complex No. 1, Pyongyang
SeatPyongyang
NominatorParty Congress
AppointerParty Congress
Term lengthFive years,
life tenure
Constituting instrumentRules of the Workers' Party of Korea
Inaugural holderKim Tu-bong
Formation24 June 1949; 75 years ago (1949-06-24)
DeputySecretariat
General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea
Hangul
조선로동당 총비서
Hanja
Revised RomanizationJoseon Rodongdang Chongbiseo
McCune–ReischauerChosŏn Rodongdang Ch'ongbisŏ

The office traces its lineage back to the reestablishment of the Communist Party of Korea (CPK) on 14 September 1945 when Pak Hon-yong was elected Chairman of the CPK Central Committee.[2] Later on 13 October 1945 the CPK established an internal North Korean Branch Bureau (NKBB) and nominated Hyon Chun-hyok as branch secretary.[3] Hyon Chun-hyok was assassinated on 3 September 1945 and Kim Yong-bom was elected as branch secretary in his place.[4] On 10 April 1946 the NKBB became independent of the CPK and changed its name to Communist Party of North Korea (CPNK).[5] Later that year, on 30 August, the CPNK merged with the New People's Party of Korea to establish the Workers' Party of North Korea (WPNK).[6] Kim Tu-bong was elected WPNK Chairman by the 1st WPNK Central Committee.[7] In the meantime the Workers' Party of South Korea (WPSK) was established through the merger of the Communist Party of South Korea (led by Pak Hon-yong), New People's Party of Korea and a faction of the People's Party of Korea on 24 November 1946.[8] The WPSK Central Committee elected Ho Hon as its party chairman.[9] On the merger of the WPNK and the WPSK on 24 June 1949, the 2nd Central Committee elected Kim Il Sung as Chairman of the WPK Central Committee.[10]

The offices of Chairman and Vice Chairman of the WPK Central Committee were abolished on 12 October 1966 and replaced with the offices of General Secretary and Secretary of the WPK Central Committee by a decision of the 14th Plenary Session of the 4th Central Committee.[11] Kim Il Sung was elected and remained in office until his death on 8 July 1994.[12] The post was abolished and replaced by the office of General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea on 8 October 1997 after having been left vacant for 3 years and 92 days.[13] Kim Jong Il was elected to the office by a joint announcement of the 6th Central Committee and the 6th Central Military Commission.[13] Kim Jong Il remained in office until his death on 17 December 2011. The office of General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea was left vacant for 116 days and was later abolished. Instead, Kim Jong Un was elected First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea on 11 April 2012, and his father, Kim Jong Il, was given the appellation "Eternal General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea".[14] On 9 May 2016, the 7th WPK Congress abolished the office of First Secretary and the Secretariat and replaced it with Chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea and the office of Vice Chairman of the WPK Central Committee.[15] A similar change took place at the 8th WPK Congress, where the offices of chairman and vice chairman were abolished and replaced by the office of General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and the Secretariat.[16]

Title history

edit
Title Established Abolished Established by
Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Korea
조선공산당 중앙위원회 위원장 		14 September 1945 10 April 1946 1945 Congress of the Communist Party of Korea
First Secretary of the North Korean Branch Bureau of the Communist Party of Korea
조선공산당 북조선분국 비서 		13 October 1945 10 April 1946 Conference of Members and Enthusiasts in the Five Northwestern Provinces
First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of North Korea
북조선공산당 중앙위원회 위원장 		10 April 1946 30 August 1946 5th Enlarged Plenary Session of the North Korean Branch Bureau's Executive Committee
Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of South Korea
남조선공산당 중앙위원회 위원장 		10 April 1946 24 November 1946 April Plenary Session of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Korea
Chairman of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of North Korea
북조선로동당 중앙위원회 위원장 		30 August 1946 24 June 1949 1st Congress of the Workers' Party of North Korea
Chairman of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of South Korea
남조선로동당 중앙위원회 위원장 		24 November 1946 24 June 1949 1st Congress of the Workers' Party of South Korea
Chairman of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea
조선로동당 중앙위원회 위원장 		24 June 1949 12 October 1966 1st Joint Plenary Session of the 2nd Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea
General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea
조선로동당 중앙위원회 총비서 		12 October 1966 8 October 1997 14th Plenary Session of the 4th Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea
General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea
조선로동당 총비서 		8 October 1997 11 April 2012 Joint Communique of the 6th Central Committee and the 6th Central Military Commission
First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea
조선로동당 제1비서 		11 April 2012 9 May 2016 4th Conference of the Workers' Party of Korea
Chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea
조선로동당 위원장 		9 May 2016 10 January 2021 7th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea
General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea
조선로동당 총비서 		10 January 2021 Incumbent 8th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea
References:
[11][13][14][15][16][17]

Predecessors (1945–49)

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National

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No.
[note 2] 		Portrait Name Hangul Took office Left office Duration Birth Death Ref.
1   Pak Hon-yong 박헌영 14 September 1945 10 April 1946 208 days 1900 1955 [2]

In the North

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No.
[note 2] 		Portrait Name Hangul Took office Left office Duration Birth Death Ref.
1   Kim Yong-bom 김용범 13 October 1945 18 December 1945 66 days 1902 1947 [18]
2   Kim Il Sung 김일성 18 December 1945 30 August 1946 255 days 1912 1994 [19]
3   Kim Tu-bong 김두봉 31 August 1946 24 June 1949 2 years and 297 days 1889 1958 [20]

In the South

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No.
[note 2] 		Portrait Name Hangul Took office Left office Duration Birth Death Ref.
1   Pak Hon-yong 박헌영 10 April 1946 24 November 1946 228 days 1900 1955 [9]
2   Ho Hon 허헌 24 November 1946 24 June 1949 2 years and 212 days 1885 1951 [9]

Leaders of the Workers' Party of Korea

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By officeholders

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No.
[note 2] 		Portrait Name Hangul Took office Left office Duration Birth Death Ref.
1   Kim Il Sung 김일성 24 June 1949 8 July 1994 45 years and 14 days 1912 1994 [10]
2   Kim Jong Il 김정일 8 October 1997 17 December 2011 14 years and 70 days 1941 2011 [13]
3   Kim Jong Un 김정은 11 April 2012 Incumbent 12 years and 224 days 1983
—
 [21]

By term

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Congress Term Start End Duration Leader
1st Congress 1st Central Committee 30 August 1946 30 March 1948 1 year and 213 days Kim Tu-bong
2nd Congress 2nd Central Committee 30 March 1948 29 April 1956 8 years and 30 days Kim Tu-bong
Kim Il Sung
3rd Congress 3rd Central Committee 29 April 1956 18 September 1961 5 years and 142 days Kim Il Sung
4th Congress 4th Central Committee 18 September 1961 13 November 1970 9 years and 56 days Kim Il Sung
5th Congress 5th Central Committee 13 November 1970 14 October 1980 9 years and 336 days Kim Il Sung
6th Congress 6th Central Committee 14 October 1980 9 May 2016 35 years and 208 days Kim Il Sung
Kim Jong Il
Kim Jong Un
7th Congress 7th Central Committee 9 May 2016 10 January 2021 4 years and 246 days Kim Jong Un
8th Congress 8th Central Committee 10 January 2021 Incumbent 3 years and 316 days Kim Jong Un
References:
[10][13][15][16][22][23][24][25][26]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Kim Jong Un was leader of the WPK under the title of "First Secretary" from 11 April 2012 until 9 May 2016 and "Chairman" from 9 May 2016 until 10 January 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d These numbers are not official.

References

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Footnotes

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  1. ^ Madden, Michael (2 February 2012). "4th Party Conference To Convene in "mid-April"". North Korea Leadership Watch. Archived from the original on 29 November 2020. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
    Madden, Michael (15 August 2010). "Party Secretariat". North Korea Leadership Watch. Archived from the original on 20 August 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
  2. ^ a b Suh 1981, p. 281.
  3. ^ Suh 1981, pp. 279–80.
  4. ^ Lee 1963, p. 5; Suh 1981, p. 280.
  5. ^ Suh 1981, p. 280.
  6. ^ Suh 1981, pp. 282–3.
  7. ^ Suh 1981, p. 283.
  8. ^ Suh 1981, p. 282.
  9. ^ a b c Suh 1981, p. 318.
  10. ^ a b c Suh 1981, p. 321.
  11. ^ a b Suh 1981, p. 328.
  12. ^ Suh 1981, p. 328; Gause 2011, p. 18.
  13. ^ a b c d e Gause 2011, p. 18.
  14. ^ a b Gause 2013, pp. 40–41.
  15. ^ a b c Madden, Michael (20 May 2016). "Deciphering the 7th Party Congress: A Teaser for Greater Change?". 38 North. Archived from the original on 12 February 2021. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
  16. ^ a b c Frank, Rüdiger (19 January 2021). "Key Results of The Eighth Party Congress in North Korea (Part 2 of 2)". 38 North. Archived from the original on 12 February 2021. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
  17. ^ Suh 1981, pp. 279–83.
  18. ^ Suh 1981, pp. 281–82.
  19. ^ Suh 1981, p. 316.
  20. ^ Suh 1981, p. 319.
  21. ^ Sang-Hun, Choe (11 April 2012). "As Rocket Launching Nears, North Korea Continues Shift to New' Supreme Leader'". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  22. ^ Suh 1981, pp. 316–17.
  23. ^ Suh 1981, pp. 319–20.
  24. ^ Suh 1981, p. 322.
  25. ^ Suh 1981, p. 325.
  26. ^ Suh 1981, p. 332.

Bibliography

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"Books:"

"Journal articles:"

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