Was Jang Song-taek Actually Executed By the Regime Inner Circle

I have always said that Kim Jong-un is not an absolute dictator and instead rules with the consensus of an inner regime circle.  The below article tends to confirm this hypothesis.  Jang Song-taek may have been trying  overly grow his power base above what other inner regime circle types were comfortable with:

The motives behind the highly publicized execution of Jang Sung Taek, the uncle of current North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, have been open to question, but a South Korean analyst said Jang’s ambition to restore an old power structure could have played a role in his death sentence.

Ko Soo-suk, a senior researcher at the Unification Research Institute of JoongAng Ilbo, a South Korean newspaper, wrote Jang was seeking the role of prime minister in the North Korean Cabinet.  (………………)

 

Jang, who was a prominent figure under former leader Kim Jong Il, often traveled to China and even to South Korea to learn about economic policy and planning. Jang has often been associated with economic reform, but in December 2013 was executed on charges of treason and of being a “counterrevolutionary.”

The prime minister position Jang could have had in mind was the more influential version in place under North Korea founder Kim Il Sung. Prime ministers under the late Kim were in charge of economic policy and Jang would have been well-suited for a bigger role involving growth and development.

Ko also stated in his analysis that members of North Korea’s core leadership, rather than Kim Jong Un, could have thwarted Jang’s ambition. Core leadership officials foiled attempts by Jang to procure a meeting with Kim, who was away on a field guidance trip at a critical time. While Kim was away, Ko wrote, core members could have been able to enforce an order of execution for Jang.  [UPI]

You can read more at the link.