North Korea defector claims Kim Jong-un’s reign will be ‘shortest ever’

A North Korean defector has claimed the brutal dictatorship “will collapse within ten years”.

The man, who is not being identified to protect his safety and that of his family still inside the Hermit Kingdom, worked among North Korea’s elite until his escape just a year ago.

“It is Kim Jong-un’s regime that is the most unstable,” he claimed. The defector told CNN he believed Mr Kim’s reign would be “the shortest”.

Both his father and grandfather, Kim Jong-Il and Kim Il-sung, ruled North Korea for more than two decades, maintaining their control through brutal national and local party purges.

But the 2013 purge may have cost the 32-year-old dictator, according to the defector. The purge and allegedly public execution of his uncle, Jang Song Thaek, meant the population had lost trust in their leader “by witnessing him being willing to kill his own uncle.”

“I can tell you for sure, the North Korean regime will collapse within 10 years,” he claimed.

Between 2008 and 2013, between 2,400 and 2,900 people defected annually from North Korea. In 2014 the number dropped significantly (to 1,396) as results of a slightly improved economy and increased propaganda, analysts believe.

[CNN]

This entry was posted in DPRK Government, Jang Song Thaek purge, Kim Jong Un, North Korean refugee by Grant Montgomery.