First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea
| First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea | |
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Flag of the Workers' Party of Korea | |
| Appointer | Central Committee and the Central Military Commission or party conference |
| Term length | None |
| Formation | 11 April 2012 |
| First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea | |
| Chosŏn'gŭl | 조선로동당 제1비서 |
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| Hancha | 朝鮮勞動黨第一秘書 |
| Revised Romanization | Joseon Rodongdang Jeilbiseo |
| McCune–Reischauer | Chosŏn Rodongdang Che'ilbisŏ |
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| This article is part of a series on the politics and government of North Korea |
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| Foreign relations |
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First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea is the title given to the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea.
History
From 1946 to 1966, the party′s leader was called Chairman of the Central Committee. Since 1966, the year the 2nd Party Conference reformed the structure of the Party, the Central Committee, usually at its first plenum after a party congress, elected a leader called the General Secretary of the Central Committee; the post was held by Kim Il-sung from 1966 to 1994, the year of his demise. Although the Party Rules stipulated that the party leader was to be elected by the Central Committee, Kim Jong-il was proclaimed General Secretary of the Party (not "of the Central Committee") by a joint notice of the Central Committee and Central Military Commission on 8 October 1997 following resolutions proposing Kim Jong-il's election adopted by the provincial Party organizations; he was then re-elected directly by the 3rd Party Conference in September 2010.
The 2012 Party Conference "decided to hold Kim Jong Il … in high esteem as eternal general secretary of the WPK …"[1] and therefore elected the new leader Kim Jong-un First Secretary of the WPK (again not "of the Central Committee").
Officeholders
| Name (birth–death) |
Portrait | Took office | Left office |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman of the Central Committee (1946–1966) | |||
| Kim Tu-bong (1886–1957?) |
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28 August 1946 | 30 June 1949 |
| Kim Il-sung (1912–1994) |
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30 June 1949 | 11 October 1966 |
| General Secretary of the Central Committee (1966–1994) | |||
| Kim Il-sung (1912–1994) |
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11 October 1966 | 8 July 1994 |
| General Secretary of the Party (1997–2011) | |||
| Kim Jong-il (1942–2011) |
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8 October 1997 | 17 December 2011 |
| Eternal General Secretary of the Central Committee (2012-present) | |||
| Kim Jong-il (1942-2011) |
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11 April 2012 | Incumbent |
| First Secretary of the Party (2012–present) | |||
| Kim Jong-un (born 1983) |
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11 April 2012 | Incumbent |
Sources
- ↑ KCNA, April 11, 2012: WPK Conference Decides to Hold Kim Jong Il in High Esteem as Eternal General Secretary of WPK (Urgent)
Further reading
- Kim Jong-un (April 6, 2012). Let Us Brilliantly Accomplish the Revolutionary Cause of Juche, Holding Kim Jong Il in High Esteem as the Eternal General Secretary of Our Party.
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