It has been confirmed that Choe Ryong Hae, former head of

the General Political Department of the Chosun People’s Army, has been moved to a secretarial position within the Chosun Workers’ Party.

During a May 2nd report on Kim Jong Eun’s visit to the newly remodeled Songdowon

International Children’s Camp near the city of Wonsan, Chosun Central News

Agency announced, “Secretary of the

Central Committee of the Chosun Workers’ Party Choe Ryong Hae made a

speech at the ceremony.”

Choe’s ranking on the published list of attending officials also

reinforced the point that he has been demoted. He was listed fourth on the list

behind Party heavyweights Kim Ki Nam and Choe Thae Bok, as well as Hwang Pyong

So, who was listed first. Hwang, a close affiliate of Kim Jong Eun, is now performing

Choe’s former role.

Such listings have long been used as proxies for the

comparison of relative power within the ruling hierarchies of socialist states

over time. However, they are also an imprecise measure in circumstances such as

the familial state structure of North Korea. Kim Jong Eun’s sister Kim Yo Jong

appeared ninth on the list of attendees at Songdowon, but her power is likely

to exceed that of others due to her family links within the ruling elite.

Choe’s demotion means that all four of the core personnel

tasked with building the Kim Jong Eun succession system have now been removed

from gatekeeper roles. Among the other three, former Chief-of-Staff Ri Yong Ho

was dismissed from all his positions in mid-2012, Jang Song Taek was executed

at the end of 2013, and Kim Jong Eun’s aunt Kim Kyong Hui has not been publicly

active since autumn 2013.

“Director of the

General Political Department of the KPA is the position of overall management

and control of the People’s Army; being pushed out of that position breaks Choe

Ryong Hae’s authority,” one Seoul-based North Korea expert told Daily NK

on condition of anonymity. He added that making Choe a Party secretary is

tantamount to “giving him a high position but no authority.” Former leader Kim

Jong Il took similar steps on a regular basis to ensure that no alternative

power bases were able to form beyond his immediate control.

However, Sejong Institute researcher Cheong Seong Chang gave

an alternative analysis, pointing out, “Choe Ryong Hae is in worsening health,

which means that he could no longer actively pursue the leading role in the

General Political Department. Rather than making him retire following his

dismissal, he has been appointed to a Party position dealing with labor

organizations, where the burden of the work is smaller.”

“Kim Jong Eun positioned Choe very close by his side, to

show that he still has unwavering trust in him,” Cheong added. In North Korean television

footage from the Songdowon events, Choe appears alongside Kim Jong Eun almost

continuously, dressed in a dark business suit with the mandatory pin badge.

Meanwhile, it has not been confirmed whether Choe has also

been removed from the Standing Committee of the Party Politburo, National

Defense Commission and Party Central Military Committee, although this is believed

to be likely.