09/20/2012, 00.00
NORTH KOREA
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Not just Kate: Pyongyang censors first lady’s past

by Joseph Yun Li-sun
Instead of fighting the famine, the regime led by Kim Jong-un has launched a campaign to retrieve a CD containing the songs by "companion Ri", wife of the dictator. The "pop" image clashes with that of the sober matron concerned about the revolution and the people.

Seoul (AsiaNews) - Instead of carrying out the program of economic reforms, the authorities of North Korea prefer to launch a campaign against pop music. The reason behind this decision is to prevent the population from finding out that the new wife of the dictator, "companion Ri Sol-joo", was until last year a mediocre pop singer.

A source tells the Daily NK: "In practice, there are buyers all over Pyongyang. They are searching for the CD containing her songs, including one titled 'Sobaeksu': the album cover is in fact a photo of her face ". The mission involves the Department of propaganda and Agitation.

The campaign aims to eliminate the "awkward" past of the first lady of North Korea. As the source explains, "her role as a singer clashes with the image of matron concerned about the health of the North Korean people. Nevertheless, thanks to the new media, it is very difficult to keep a secret. Lots of people know she sang with the 'Unhasu orchestra. "

The marriage of Kim Jong-un, the third son and successor of the "Dear Leader" Kim Jong-il, and "companion Ri" was combined by his uncle (and guardian). She was presented as a fervent revolutionary, an image required by the wife of the leader who wants to follow in the footsteps of his grandfather Kim Il-sung.

However, the two have already been the focus of several small scandals while people are dying of hunger and the country is in fact marginalized by the international community, the couple opened an amusement park and a fast food restaurant in the capital. In addition, photos of the new Mrs. Kim with an expensive designer bag have outraged the North Koreans.

 

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