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http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2011/02/116_81471.html
Kim Jong-il’s 2nd son sighted in Singapore
By Kim Se-jeong
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il’s second eldest son Kim Jong-chul, 31, was spotted by a South Korean TV camera crew in Singapore, Monday.
KBS showed video footage of him Tuesday waiting in line at a concert hall to see a performance by Eric Clapton, the famous British rock singer.
This is second time that he has been photographed at a Clapton concert following a previous sighting in Germany in 2006.
The footage showed Kim accompanied by dozens of men and women.
Separate shots showed him taking pictures inside the concert hall, as a young woman sat next to him.
It is not a secret that Jong-chul is a huge fan of Clapton. In a recent WikiLeaks cable, the former U.S. ambassador to Korea, Alexander Vershbow, wrote the regime had tried to invite the singer to Pyongyang for a concert, though Clapton turned down the offer.
Jong-chul is believed to be on good terms with Jong-un, the heir to the North Korean regime.
Both born to Goh Young-hee, a ballerina girlfriend of Kim Jong-il, Jong-chul and his brother went to school in Bern, Switzerland in the 1990s.
His trip to Singapore came two days before his father’s birthday, celebrated as one of the biggest holidays in North Korea.
Analysts showed a mixed reaction to the news. One scholar appearing on KBS said it indicated the power shift to Jong-un has been successful.
Yoo Ho-yeol, a professor at Korea University said, on the other hand, it carried very little significance.
“If he were away today (the eve of the father’s birthday), it would be a totally different story.”
Song Byeok, a defector painter, said the news didn’t come as a surprise at all.
“That’s the nature of the corruption in North Korea.”
[email protected]
Kim Jong-il’s 2nd son sighted in Singapore
By Kim Se-jeong
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il’s second eldest son Kim Jong-chul, 31, was spotted by a South Korean TV camera crew in Singapore, Monday.
KBS showed video footage of him Tuesday waiting in line at a concert hall to see a performance by Eric Clapton, the famous British rock singer.
This is second time that he has been photographed at a Clapton concert following a previous sighting in Germany in 2006.
The footage showed Kim accompanied by dozens of men and women.
Separate shots showed him taking pictures inside the concert hall, as a young woman sat next to him.
It is not a secret that Jong-chul is a huge fan of Clapton. In a recent WikiLeaks cable, the former U.S. ambassador to Korea, Alexander Vershbow, wrote the regime had tried to invite the singer to Pyongyang for a concert, though Clapton turned down the offer.
Jong-chul is believed to be on good terms with Jong-un, the heir to the North Korean regime.
Both born to Goh Young-hee, a ballerina girlfriend of Kim Jong-il, Jong-chul and his brother went to school in Bern, Switzerland in the 1990s.
His trip to Singapore came two days before his father’s birthday, celebrated as one of the biggest holidays in North Korea.
Analysts showed a mixed reaction to the news. One scholar appearing on KBS said it indicated the power shift to Jong-un has been successful.
Yoo Ho-yeol, a professor at Korea University said, on the other hand, it carried very little significance.
“If he were away today (the eve of the father’s birthday), it would be a totally different story.”
Song Byeok, a defector painter, said the news didn’t come as a surprise at all.
“That’s the nature of the corruption in North Korea.”
[email protected]