Pregnancy rumors envelop North Korea
November 1, 2012 -- Updated 0057 GMT (0857
HKT)
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his wife, Ri
Sol-ju, are pictured at a party in July.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Rumors are swirling whether the first lady of North Korea is pregnant
- Ri Sol Ju, wife of Kim Jong Un, reappeared in public after a two-month absence
- Photo appeared in state media showing her wearing a long coat, sparking speculation
- Analyst: Rumors first started from North Korean officials who attended the same event
This could easily be about a
Hollywood star but this time, we're talking about the world's most reclusive
nation, North Korea, and its first lady.
Ri Sol Ju,
the wife of young leader Kim Jong Un, has not been seen in public for around
two months, according to North Korea watchers. A photo released by the state-run
news agency KCNA shows her back in public and wearing a long coat that could be
hiding a bump. Ri watched a football match and attended a musical concert with
her husband Monday to mark the 60th anniversary of the Kim Il Sung Military
University.
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South Korean media has kicked
into overdrive to speculate on whether she is pregnant or whether she was kept
out of the public eye as a disciplinary measure for a perceived slight. Local
media has claimed she may have fallen out of favor for not wearing a lapel pin
of the former leaders, a requirement for adult North Koreans.
"Rumors first came out from
officials who attended the same event," said Kim Yong-hoon, head of the North
Korean desk at Daily NK, an online newspaper based in Seoul that focuses on
North Korea. "They started questioning and speculating if she was pregnant and
it has spread throughout the country and that's how we heard about the
rumors."
Kim says the interest in whether
Ri is pregnant is far higher outside of North Korea than it is inside, according
to his sources inside the isolated nation.
John Delury, assistant professor
at Yonsei University says this global interest speaks volumes about the way any
news about North Korea is handled.
"Do we track the last time
Michelle Obama showed up?" Delury says. "Our minds are so trained to do this
with North Korea that we miss the bigger picture which is there is something new
--and by almost international standards we could say more normal -- about the
way she appears in public."
By announcing Ri Sol Ju as his
wife and having her accompany him on many public engagements, Kim Jong Un has
shown a personality very different to his late father, Kim Jong Il.
While producing a son and heir
for a dynastic regime is considered very important, Delury points out "that's
also true for the families of the 'chaebol' or business conglomerates of South
Korea, for Hyundai and Samsung," he says. "Even in the U.S. and UK, powerful
families are concerned about producing the next generation."
Journalist Jungeun Kim contributed to this report
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