Ri Yong-mu

Ri Yong -mu ( born January 25, 1925 in P'yŏngan - namdo ) is a North Korean politician of the Workers' Party of Korea ( WPK ) and Vice Marshal of the Korean People's Army ( KPA ), inter alia, on the Third Party Conference in September 2010 as a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee (CC ) has been selected the WPK and vice - chairman of the National Defense Commission. He belongs to the first generation of political elite of North Korea and is the husband of one of the aunts of Kim Jong- il. He regularly takes part in government and party events and is a permanent member on the podiums at the meetings and other official events.

Life

Ascent to Colonel General and disempowerment 1977

Ri Yong -mu entered 1947 in the Central Guard Battalion and served in the 1960s as a political officer during the Kim Il-sung's campaign to subject the people's army of political control. In June 1964, he was promoted to Lieutenant General and appointed First Vice - Director of the Political Department of the Ministry of People's Armed Forces.

At the Fifth Congress of the Party in November 1970 Ri was elected a member of the Central Committee and in December 1972 the deputies of the fifth Supreme People's Assembly. He was also a member of the Qualifications and Credentials Committee. In 1973, his promotion to Colonel General, and appointed director of the General Political Department of the Ministry of People's Armed Forces and become the leading political officer of the People's Army. In June 1974 he was also elected a member of the Politburo of the Central Committee.

In October 1977 Ri was expelled from the Central Committee of the Party of Labour and dismissed as head of the Political Department because of his links to opponents of Kim Il-sung and its newly introduced Juche ideology, which would replace Marxism- Leninism as a political ideology. After his dismissal, he disappeared from public life and became more long subjected to a re-education.

Political comeback and climb to the Vice - Chairman of the National Defence Commission

An official position took Ri Yong -mu only in January 1985 again as was appointed Vice - Chairman of the People's Committee of the province Ryanggang -do and was responsible for the administration of this province there. In November 1988, his political role was restored by the election of the candidates of the Central Committee and this rehabilitation confirmed by the re-election as a member of the Central Committee of the Party of Labour in June 1989. At the same time, he became in 1989 chairman of the State Inspection Committee appointed before he was chairman of the Transportation Commission in December 1991.

Ri Yong- mu, which in April 1992, Kim Il-sung Medal was awarded, was among the members of the funeral committee at the funerals of Kim Il-sung in July 1994 and of O Chin- u in February 1995, although he in the hierarchy in paragraphs 55 and 52 was not among the top officials at these funerals.

During the opening session of the Tenth Supreme People's Assembly Ri was elected Vice - Chairman of the National Defence Commission. At the same time, he was awarded the Order of Hero of Labour in February 1998 and he promoted in September 1998 Vice- Marshal. 2003 and 2009 he was also re-elected as deputies of the Supreme People's Assembly. Last place on September 28, 2010 he was elected a member of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee.