Party elite executed to clear path for Kim Jong-un

A reign of terror has descended on the Communist Party in Pyongyang.

There have been reports of purges and executions to secure the succession of Kim Jong-un as North Korea's new dictator.

South Korean newspapers say more than 200 officials have been executed or detained by the state security bureau and one official jumped to his death.

North Korean guards are reported to have shot dead five would-be escapees along the frozen river on the border with China, and notices have appeared threatening the death penalty for anyone caught using a Chinese mobile phone or trading in US dollars.

The younger Kim - promoted by his ailing father Kim Jong-il late last year - is said to have called for "gunshots across the country".

"Since last year the regime has apparently relied increasingly on public executions to tighten control," said the South Korean ambassador for international security, Nam Joo-hong. Complaints about the succession of the younger Kim were one reason for the number of executions, he told Chosun Ilbo, a conservative newspaper in Seoul.

Diplomats monitored 60 shooting executions last year, three times more than in 2009, the newspaper said.

Travellers from North Korea, defectors and foreign sources have provided details in recent weeks suggesting bloodshed started last month after the Kim dynasty unveiled its heir.

Chinese security chief Zhou Yongkang attended the parade at which Jong-un appeared before the masses and evidently returned to Beijing convinced the young successor would acquire his own authority.

North Korea's nuclear weapons and its recent attacks on South Korea will be high on the agenda when Chinese President Hu Jintao meets US President Barack Obama at the White House this week, but the Chinese insist their influence in Pyongyang is limited.

Reports indicate some of China's friends are falling victim to the purges during the transition in the dictatorship.

Jong-un is reported to be targeting middle-aged officials linked to the two old-guard figures closest to his father.

They are Jang Song-taek, brother-in-law to the elder Kim and entrusted with key appointments, and Okuk-ryol, a veteran of the National Defence Commission, North Korea's most important body. Analysts say the aim is to weaken the two men and enhance Jong-un's ability to inculcate fear and obedience.

Sources: The Sunday Times, The Australian, January 17, 2011

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