North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may be preparing to hand power to a woman for the first time in the country’s history, according to defectors and South Korean intelligence sources. They say Kim has taken his 13-year-old daughter, Kim Ju Ae, to missile tests and military parades for the past four years, in what is reportedly a strategy to groom her as a future leader.
Tae Yong-ho, a former North Korean diplomat, said the protocol now accorded to Kim Ju Ae suggests she has effectively been marked as her father’s official successor. He noted that similar honors were extended to Kim Jong Un himself when he was earlier designated heir. The Kim family has ruled North Korea, founded in 1948, as a dictatorship for three generations.
The prospect of a female leader would be a notable departure in a deeply male-dominated society. Only one woman currently serves as a director among the 17 departments of the ruling Workers’ Party: Kim Yo Jong, the leader’s sister. Defectors say some in North Korea find it hard to accept a young girl as Supreme Leader.
Other analysts, however, argue that gender is unlikely to pose a major obstacle, since the Kim family is regarded in North Korea as godlike rulers over the people.