In most countries, footage showing the leader with a limp might have generated some curiosity. But in tightly controlled North Korea, those images — coupled with the disappearance of the country’s ruler, Kim Jong-un, from public view for five weeks — have generated endless debate among foreign officials and analysts always on the lookout for upheaval in one of the world’s most dangerous police states. The disappearance is especially notable because Mr. Kim, like his father and grandfather before him, has used public appearances accompanied by fawning subjects as a key tool of the propaganda machine that has long held the state together. Continue reading the main story RELATED COVERAGE Kim Jong-un in an undated picture released by the Korean Central News Agency. This summer, Mr. Kim had been seen on video walking with a limp.North Korea Reveals Leader Is ‘Not Feeling Well’ SEPT. 26, 2014 Kim Kwan-jin, left, the top national security adviser for President Park Geun-hye of South Korea, met Hwang Pyong-so, second from right, the top political officer of the North Korean military, and other top officials from the North in Incheon on Saturday. It was the highest-level talks in years, fueling hopes of a breakthrough in the nations’ troubled ties.South and North Korea Agree to New TalksOCT. 4, 2014 For now, American and South Korean officials say that while they think the young leader might be ailing, there is no sign that there has been a coup. After three generations of Kims, any shift away from dynastic rule would probably involve unusual movements of the country’s million-plus military or its people, and none have been detected by the South. Read more http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/09/w...mors-about-him-swirl-in-north-korea.html?_r=0
