North Korea, No Special Mention on Kim Jong-un's 38th Birthday

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] Although it was the 38th birthday of Kim Jong-un, General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, it has been revealed that neither the party nor the state-run media held any special commemorative events.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to diplomatic sources on the 8th, North Korea does not officially commemorate Kim Jong-un's birthday. The North Korean calendar also marks this day as an ordinary Saturday without any special notation.

There was no mention of Kim Jong-un's birthday in reports from North Korean state media such as the Korean Central News Agency, the Workers' Party organ newspaper Rodong Sinmun, and Korean Central Broadcasting Station.

News included reports on rallies held the previous day in Pyongannam-do, Hwanghaebuk-do, Jagang-do, Kangwon-do, Hamgyeongbuk-do, and Nampo City to implement the decisions of the Workers' Party Central Committee plenary meeting held from the 27th to the 31st of last month, as well as content encouraging achievements in various fields.

The Korean Central News Agency introduced a statement from the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Democratic Republic of the Congo praising Kim Jong-un as an outstanding leader with exceptional leadership skills. However, this was announced on the 3rd in relation to the plenary meeting and appears unrelated to Kim Jong-un's birthday.

North Korea officially commemorates the birthdays of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il as the Day of the Sun (April 15) and the Day of the Shining Star (February 16), respectively.

In contrast, Kim Jong-un's birthday has not yet been formalized and passes each year without special mention.

Kim Jong-un's birthday was first confirmed on January 8, 2014, when the Korean Central News Agency reported the visit of former American professional basketball player Dennis Rodman to North Korea, stating that he came to North Korea "to celebrate the Marshal's (Kim Jong-un's) birthday."

Last year's birthday coincided with the 8th Party Congress, and in 2019, ahead of the Hanoi North Korea-U.S. summit, Kim Jong-un visited China for four days from January 7 to 10 at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

North Korea declared Kim Jong-il's birthday a public holiday only in 1982, eight years after he was designated as successor in 1974 and when he turned forty, and in 1995 it was proclaimed as "the nation's greatest holiday."