How Kim Jong-un Is Executing His Way to Idolization

The Daily NK has an interesting read that compares the 1956 August Faction Incident which was the largest conspiracy to topple Kim Il-sung since he rose to power in 1948 with the 2013 Jang Song-taek purge by current North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.  The bottom line is that the author believes we will continue to see a lot more killing due to the lack of idolization of Kim Jong-un in North Korea compared to his father and grandfather:  

Right now, North Korea is still in the process of beginning to idolize Kim Jong Un. In North Korean power politics, is there a more important element than idolization? The relationship with China and Russia, along with the policies related to industry have all been pushed back and delayed. In a totalitarian dictatorship, the leader’s authority is not guaranteed without idolization firmly in place. To accomplish this, the regime must kill many people. To put it another way, as the regime continues to snatch up important people and examine them, they’ll need to kill more and more. As Kim Jong Un continues to secure his place, we will most likely see a revamp of the North Korean totalitarianism that occurred from 1960-1980.

In all likelihood, about 30-40 years remain. In the road ahead, Kim Jong Un will not likely be able to establish power in the way his father and grandfather did. During the time of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, the foundation for their absolute dictatorship was already in place. If Kim Jong Un wishes to command the power and respect that his forebears did, he still has many, many people left to kill.   [Daily NK]

You can read the rest at the link.