by Gabriele Principato
The North Korean leader has given Ri Chunhee, a state television host for 50 years, a luxurious home in the new neighborhood reserved for “true patriots”. Apartments are now the focus of Kim Jongun’s political propaganda
Kim Jongun gives the “Lady in Pink” an apartment. And to North Korea’s other “true patriots,” including radio host Choe Song Won and journalist Tong Thae Gwan. In a video released by state media a perfect example of political propaganda the leader himself can be seen accompanying them to take possession of the luxury residences in central Pyongyang. The new complex dubbed Kyongrudong was due to be completed by the end of 2021 and sits on the site of what was once the mansion of DPRK’s late founding leader Kim Il Sung.
The district of 800 multistorey houses equipped with furniture, appliances and air conditioning is reserved for the regime’s biggest supporters like Ri Chunhee.
Known as the “people’s spokeswoman” at around seventy, she has been reading important news for the government on North Korean television for half a century. As a journalist and presenter, it was she who announced to the world the death of the great leader Kim II in 1995 and the death of her son Kim Jong II in 2011. Both times she burst into tears live. Then, in 2017, the popular North Korean presenter told the world with emotion the “perfect success” first achieved by Pyongyang in testing the hydrogen bomb.
Who is Kim Jongun’s “Lady in Pink”?
Officially retired in 2012, Ri Chunhee reappears on video whenever the need arises. Because only she should be able to bring the important news to the world on the screens of the Korean Central Television (KCTV): from new missile tests to warnings about the evils of the West. Known as the “lady in pink” for her passion for “chima jeogori,” which is the traditional Korean dress of that color, she seems to love the good life and good restaurants of Pyongyang.
After starting out as an actress, she began working in television in 1971. It also returned to the screens a few days ago to announce the birth of the neighborhood dedicated to the “true patriots where they and their family have received a luxury home. During the news, she also spoke about herself in the third person while being shown arm in arm with Kim Jong Un on screen.
The new propaganda about Kim Jongun’s homes
A few days ago, the North Korean ruler inaugurated a new street with residential buildings on the outskirts of the capital, which offers space for 10,000 residents. In fact, for Kim Jongun, houses are a powerful tool of political propaganda. It can be seen after the typhoon that hit the country in November 2020. Shortly after the disaster, houses were quickly built in many rural areas that looked very similar and were identical in floor plan: four rooms already decorated with the portraits of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il and equipped with a radio for listening to North Koreans third radio station.
A little over a year ago, the North Korean leader paid an official visit to the construction sites of a new ambitious project: 50,000 apartments near Pyongyang. Part of a project that according to North Korean propaganda represents a major housing plan to be completed within five years, aimed at the country’s economic development and improving the living standards of citizens whose conditions, according to the United Nations, have been involved with of the pandemic and in many cases have starved to death.
April 14, 2022 (Change April 14, 2022 | 15:50)
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