North Korea has executed Kim Jong-
un's uncle as a "traitor for all ages"
who confessed to planning a coup,
state media has announced.
Jang Song-thaek, previously one of the
country's most powerful men, was
accused of everything from plotting to
overthrow the state to instigating
disastrous currency reforms and
dishing out pornography in the report
from official news agency KCNA.
It denounced him as "worse than a
dog" and "despicable human scum".
KCNA said a special military tribunal
had found him guilty of treason and
the Rodong Sinmun newspaper carried
a photograph of him handcuffed and
held by uniformed guards in the
courtroom.
North Korea announced earlier this
week that Jang, thought to be in his
late 60s, had been stripped of all posts
and expelled from the Workers' party
for offences including factionalism,
corruption and dissolute behaviour.
But many had thought his marriage to
the youthful leader's aunt – the sister
of late leader Kim Jong-il – was likely
to save his life.
In Pyongyang, people crowded around
subway station billboards displaying
the morning paper and news of the
execution, Associated Press reported.
Others sat quietly and listened as a
radio broadcast broadcast into the
subway listed Jang's crimes.
The lengthy, bombastic and at times
downright bizarre report from KCNA
quoted an alleged admission by Jang
that he sought to destabilise the
country, triggering discontent among
the military and others. He planned to
become premier if North Korea
approached collapse and use illicitly
acquired wealth to ensure that "the
people and service personnel will
shout 'hurrah' for me" and his coup
would succeed smoothly".

It also claimed he pursued a "decadent
capitalist lifestyle" – squandering at
least €4.6m in 2009 alone, including in
a foreign casino – and deliberately
hampered construction projects in
Pyongyang.
He sold off natural resources "at
random" and committed treachery by
selling off land at the Rason special
economic zone for five decades, it
added, apparently in reference to a
deal with Russia.
"They are using this opportunity to
scapegoat Uncle Jang by relegating
responsibility for all policy failures,"
said Leonid Petrov of the Australian
National University.
Other offences cited include
halfhearted applause as Kim rose to
power and Jang's "reckless"
instruction to security forces to erect a
granite block with Kim's signature in a
shaded corner rather than in front of
their headquarters.
Brian Myers, an expert on ideology at
Dongseo University in Busan, noted
that the denigration of Jang held
potential perils for the leadership. It
raised questions about his ability to
cause so much damage for so long and
sat uneasily with North Korea's use of
collective punishment.
"This is a member of the clan in a
culture where the regime tends to
punish entire families for crimes
committed by one of them. So it seems
odd to be so explicit about [his]
crimes," Myers said.
KCNA said Jang had long held a "dirty
political ambition" but dared not act
while Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il were
alive.

It also claimed he pursued a "decadent
capitalist lifestyle" – squandering at
least €4.6m in 2009 alone, including in
a foreign casino – and deliberately
hampered construction projects in
Pyongyang.
He sold off natural resources "at
random" and committed treachery by
selling off land at the Rason special
economic zone for five decades, it
added, apparently in reference to a
deal with Russia.
"They are using this opportunity to
scapegoat Uncle Jang by relegating
responsibility for all policy failures,"
said Leonid Petrov of the Australian
National University.
Other offences cited include
halfhearted applause as Kim rose to
power and Jang's "reckless"
instruction to security forces to erect a
granite block with Kim's signature in a
shaded corner rather than in front of
their headquarters.
Brian Myers, an expert on ideology at
Dongseo University in Busan, noted
that the denigration of Jang held
potential perils for the leadership. It
raised questions about his ability to
cause so much damage for so long and
sat uneasily with North Korea's use of
collective punishment.
"This is a member of the clan in a
culture where the regime tends to
punish entire families for crimes
committed by one of them. So it seems
odd to be so explicit about [his]
crimes," Myers said.
KCNA said Jang had long held a "dirty
political ambition" but dared not act
while Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il were
alive.

"He began revealing his true colours,
thinking that it was just the time for
him to realise his wild ambition in the
period of historic turn when the
generation of the revolution was
replaced," it added.
That was when Jang – who had been
purged twice before – returned to the
forefront of North Korean politics. Kim
Jong-il appeared to have selected him
as a mentor figure who could help
smooth Kim Jong-un's path to power.
Adam Cathcart, an expert on North
Korea, said accusations of factionalism
and seeking power were "pro forma" in
such cases, but he noted how specific
the charges were and added: "There
certainly were discussions about the
direction North Korea would take
[when Kim Jong-il died]. It would be
natural for Jang to want to be part of a
collective leadership system.
"But North Korea is not moving
towards a collective system: it's all
about the one leader … It's the divine
right of Kims."
Myers added: "The most surprising and
unprecedented thing is not that
someone was planning to overthrow
the state … but the implication that he
had a substantial number of followers.
That's the first ever official admission
of significant disunity in the North
Korean state itself."
Kim has made sweeping changes to
the hierarchy in North Korea, changing
key military personnel repeatedly as
well as removing civilian members, but
family members are normally dealt
with more leniently and quietly. It is
unclear how the position of Jang's wife
Kim Kyong Hui – also seen as
something of a mentor for Kim
following her brother's death – has
been affected.
Nor is it clear whether Kim himself
initiated his uncle's ousting or whether
other parts of the elite were behind
Jang's fall. While some analysts predict
increased instability in the North, as
those associated with Jang are
removed, others argue that Kim has
consolidated his position effectively.
Patrick Ventrell, White House National
Security Council spokesman, said: "If
confirmed, this is another example of
the extreme brutality of the regime."

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