SEOUL, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Wednesday led a state funeral for Kim Yong Nam, the country’s longtime ceremonial head of state, who passed away this week at the age of 97.
According to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim Jong Un and other senior officials from a 100-member funeral committee joined Kim Yong Nam’s family as his remains were laid to rest at the Patriotic Martyrs’ Cemetery in Pyongyang. Kim Yong Nam was not related to the ruling Kim family.
State media released photos showing mourners lining the streets and bowing as a vehicle carrying Kim Yong Nam’s flag-draped coffin and a large portrait made its way to the cemetery. Kim Jong Un and other top officials were seen waiting at the entrance to pay their final respects.
North Korean Premier Pak Thae Song delivered the eulogy, praising Kim Yong Nam’s decades of service to the country. Kim Jong Un, along with hundreds of mourners in black suits and military uniforms, bowed in silent tribute before the burial.
“All the participants prayed for the immortality of the pure soul and revolutionary spirit of Kim Yong Nam, who made a distinguished contribution to the party and the state,” KCNA reported.
Kim Yong Nam served as president of the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly — North Korea’s rubber-stamp parliament — from 1998 to April 2019, a position that made him the country’s nominal head of state. Despite his title, real power has long rested with Kim Jong Un and his family, who have ruled the nation since 1948.
Throughout his career, Kim Yong Nam played a key role in North Korea’s foreign diplomacy. He gained international attention in 2018 when he attended the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in South Korea alongside Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong. The event marked a brief thaw in relations between Pyongyang, Seoul, and Washington as North Korea sought to use diplomacy to ease international sanctions in exchange for denuclearization talks.
However, those diplomatic efforts collapsed in 2019 after a failed summit between Kim Jong Un and then U.S. President Donald Trump. Kim Yong Nam was later replaced by Choe Ryong Hae as head of state that same year.
State media reported that Kim Yong Nam had been receiving treatment for colon cancer since June 2024 and died Monday following multiple organ failures.
Si Venus L Peñaflor ay naging editor-in-chief ng Newsworld, isang lokal na pahayagan ng Laguna. Publisher din siya ng Daystar Gazette at Tutubi News Magazine. Siya ay isa ring pintor at doll face designer ng Ninay Dolls, ang unang Manikang Pilipino. Kasali siya sa DesignCrowd sa rank na #305 sa 640,000 graphic designers sa buong daigdig. Kasama din siya sa unang Local TV Broadcast sa Laguna na Beyond Manila. Aktibong kasapi siya ng San Pablo Jaycees Senate bilang isang JCI Senator.
- Venus L Peñaflor
- Venus L Peñaflor
- Venus L Peñaflor
- Venus L Peñaflor
