In Mysterious Shift, N. Korean Drops ‘Great Leader’ Title

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has apparently demoted himself, ordering the removal of some official portraits and dropping the title “Great Leader.”

North Korea analysts in Seoul and Tokyo said they did not believe there had been a coup d’etat, but rather that Kim might be trying to soften his dictatorial public image.

A diplomat who was in North Korea last week said he noticed that badges on the lapels of North Korean officials showed only the image of the leader’s father, North Korean founder Kim Il Sung.

“I asked someone why there was no picture of Kim Jong Il and they replied that it shows the leader’s humbleness,” said the diplomat, who asked not to be named.

A Tokyo-based news-monitoring agency said it had detected changes in how radio stations broadcasting from the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, referred to Kim Jong Il.

In reports Wednesday, he was identified as “general secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea” and “supreme commander of the Korean People’s Army” and “Dear Leader,” but the title “Great Leader” was dropped.

“We believe that these changes were made at Kim Jong Il’s own direction and that there has been no weakening of his power,” said Shinya Kato, editor of Radiopress, the news monitor. “Our guess is that he wants to dilute the cult of personality around himself. North Korea is trying to open up its economy for foreign investment, and he might want to be perceived as more like a Western leader.”

The South Korean government has been careful in the last two days to downplay any speculation about changes in the North’s leadership structure.

“There are a lot of rumors about his status ... but we believe they are not true,” said an intelligence expert, who asked not to be identified.

The North Korean regime is considered one of the world’s most secretive, and shifts in power often go unannounced for years, prompting intelligence analysts to scrutinize even the smallest harbingers of change.

Since Kim uses various titles and North Korean officials wear various badges, the recent changes might or might not be significant, analysts said.

“It is really a mystery to us,” said Paik Jin Hyun, a North Korea analyst at Seoul National University. “There have been so many rumors about Kim Jong Il over the years that have turned out not to be true.”

The latest speculation was prompted by a report Tuesday by Russian news agency Itar-Tass. It quoted foreign diplomats who had attended a reception at the People’s Cultural Palace in Pyongyang as saying they saw only a portrait of Kim Il Sung on the wall, instead of the usual pictures of father and son.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency Wednesday quoted an unnamed source as saying that portraits were being removed at other locations because Kim was concerned that he had been “lifted too high” and wanted to change his image.