North Korea's former ceremonial head of stateKim Yong Nam has died at age 97, state media reported on Tuesday. Kim Yong Nam defied the country'spurge-prone political sceneto serve as head of parliament for 20 years, a role experts suspect he retained by showing deference to the country's supreme leaders.
Kim Yong Nam, the former head ofNorth Korea's rubber-stamp parliament who served as nominal head of state for more than 20 years, has died, state media reported on Tuesday. He was 97.
From 1998 to 2019, Kim served as president of the presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, a post that gave him a symbolic role as head of state.
However, the real decision-making power lay with leadersKim Jong-ilwho died in 2011and his sonKim Jong-un.
Kim Yong Nam died from multiple organ failure, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.
Kim Jong Un visited his bier "to express deep condolences over his death", KCNA said.
A photo showed Kim Jong-un, flanked by senior officials, paying his respects before the bier, where the deceased man lay in a glass coffin.
In 2018, Kim Yong Nam led a North Korean delegation to the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang,South Koreaa rare trip on the peninsulawhere both countries technically remain at war.
Although he was the head of the delegation, South Korean media widely reported that Kim Yong Nam yielded the seat of honour to Kim Jong-un's powerful sister,Kim Yo Jong, during a meeting with South Korean officials.
The gesture sparked speculation that Kim Yong Nam had retained positions in North Korea's purge-prone political scene for decades by showing deference to the family of the supreme leaders.
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Seoul's unification ministry, which handles its relation with the North, expressed condolences over Kim's death in a statement.
Minister Chung Dong-young said he engaged in "meaningful discussions on peace on the Korean Peninsula" when he met with Kim inPyongyangin 2005 and 2018.
Kim's 2018 visit to the South for the Pyeongchang winter Olympics contributed "in opening the door to inter-Korean dialogue", Chung added.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
Originally published on France24
