ID :
39359
Wed, 01/07/2009 - 18:32
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/39359
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N. Korea to hold parliamentary election in March
SEOUL, Jan. 7 (Yonhap) -- North Korea will hold parliamentary elections in March, Pyongyang's news agency said Wednesday, a move expected to prompt a further shakeup in the Cabinet and the military.
The Presidium of Supreme People's Assembly announced its decision on Tuesday to
"hold the 12th representatives' election on March 8 in 2009," the Korean Central
News Agency said.
North Korea was expected to hold the elections in 2008, when the assembly
members' five-year term expired. But the election did not take place amid rumors
of leader Kim Jong-il's ill health.
Seoul and Washington officials say Kim suffered a stroke in August and is now
recovering.
When a new assembly is inaugurated, the representatives customarily reshuffle the
Cabinet. They also reconfirm Kim Jong-il as chairman of the National Defense
Commission, which oversees the North's 1.1-million-strong military. A military
shakeup is also expected.
South Korea's state-run think tank expects North Korea will promote young
economic elite in the coming election, laying the groundwork for the post-Kim
Jong-il era. Economic pragmatism may emerge in the North to replace the
military-first policy, a ruling philosophy promulgated by current leader Kim
Jong-il, according the latest report by the Institute for National Security
Strategy, which is an arm of the National Intelligence Agency.
Seoul's Unification Ministry spokesman confirmed the election, saying it will
open up a new era for Kim Jong-il.
"We have to see how the new parliament will be made up," ministry spokesman Kim
Ho-nyoun said.
The Seoul ministry said on Tuesday that North Korea promoted industrial veterans
to top posts in its latest Cabinet reshuffle. Five new ministers of railways,
forestry, electricity, agriculture and metal industry, appointed in late 2008,
are mostly former vice ministers or experts in each field, it said.
Analysts say the shakeup signals Pyongyang's stepped-up drive to rebuild the
country's frail economy.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
The Presidium of Supreme People's Assembly announced its decision on Tuesday to
"hold the 12th representatives' election on March 8 in 2009," the Korean Central
News Agency said.
North Korea was expected to hold the elections in 2008, when the assembly
members' five-year term expired. But the election did not take place amid rumors
of leader Kim Jong-il's ill health.
Seoul and Washington officials say Kim suffered a stroke in August and is now
recovering.
When a new assembly is inaugurated, the representatives customarily reshuffle the
Cabinet. They also reconfirm Kim Jong-il as chairman of the National Defense
Commission, which oversees the North's 1.1-million-strong military. A military
shakeup is also expected.
South Korea's state-run think tank expects North Korea will promote young
economic elite in the coming election, laying the groundwork for the post-Kim
Jong-il era. Economic pragmatism may emerge in the North to replace the
military-first policy, a ruling philosophy promulgated by current leader Kim
Jong-il, according the latest report by the Institute for National Security
Strategy, which is an arm of the National Intelligence Agency.
Seoul's Unification Ministry spokesman confirmed the election, saying it will
open up a new era for Kim Jong-il.
"We have to see how the new parliament will be made up," ministry spokesman Kim
Ho-nyoun said.
The Seoul ministry said on Tuesday that North Korea promoted industrial veterans
to top posts in its latest Cabinet reshuffle. Five new ministers of railways,
forestry, electricity, agriculture and metal industry, appointed in late 2008,
are mostly former vice ministers or experts in each field, it said.
Analysts say the shakeup signals Pyongyang's stepped-up drive to rebuild the
country's frail economy.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
