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Article: Kim Jong Il
- Article from:
- Encyclopedia of World Biography
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Kim Jong Il
Kim Jong Il (born 1941) was the eldest son of Kim Il-sung, the founder and leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, and his heir apparent. After 1985 he began to take part in North Korean state activities and to acquire honorific titles.
Kim Jong Il (or Kim Chong-il) was the eldest son of North Korea's leader, Kim Il-sung, who founded the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in 1948. Kim Il-sung, while still in command, enjoyed his charisma as the "undisputed" leader of Communist North Korea. He had been general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) since 1946, and in 1980 his son Jong Il was made one of the party secretaries charged with the ...