Stop the Presses! North Korean parliament re-elects Kim Jong Il to 3rd term!
He seems to be aging in Metric Time right now.
The nation has just re-elected him to office, as prescribed by the Constitutional Process:
Mr. Kim’s appearance at the Supreme People’s Assembly, where he received a standing ovation and was unanimously reelected to his country’s most powerful position, was his first in public since he reportedly suffered a stroke in August. It was seen as a climactic moment of triumph after a week dominated by news of North Korea’s successful launch Sunday of a long-range missile.
Although North Korean state media have shown Kim on a record 44 visits in recent months to military and industrial sites, he was not shown in motion on video until two days ago – and then only briefly before broadcasts of a missile launch last Sunday.
Throughout the week, North Korean broadcasts have repeatedly claimed that the launch successfully put a satellite in orbit. The United States North American Aerospace Defense Command has said the missile’s payload fell into the Pacific Ocean along with the second stage of the rocket.
Kim’s appearance came a day after thousands of North Koreans rallied in the heart of the capital, shouting slogans of praise for his “glorious accomplishments†in launching the missile and the satellite.
The session of the Supreme People’s Assembly had the aura of elaborate ritual. After unanimously rubber-stamping his reelection as chairman of the National Defense Commission, the center of power, the members unanimously adopted a revision of the country’s Constitution. It’s not clear what changes were made.
In this photo made off APTN footage, North Koreans attend a mass rally at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, Friday, April 10, 2009 to celebrate the re-election of Kim Jong Il as chairman of the powerful National Defence Commission. The banner reads ‘Hurrah for great leader Kim Jong Il’s revolutionary idea ! ‘(AP Photo/APTN)
Hu has offered a hearty congratulations. Who? Hu!
Chinese President Hu Jintao conveyed a congratulatory message to North Korea’s strongman Kim Jong-il as the latter was reelected head of the National Defense Commission by its rubber-stamp parliament Thursday, Pyongyang’s official sate media said Saturday.
“The reelection (of Kim Jong-il) as the chairman of the National Defense Commission shows the North Korean people’s sincere support and high confidence (in him),” Hu said in the message, Yonhap Saturday quoted the Korea Central News Agency as saying.
Always love the re-elections held in a dictatorship. They do tend to be quite festive.