안주 Links for 11 February 2009

EVERYONE, ACT SURPRISED:

Voters’ meetings were held at all the constituencies across the country to nominate candidates for deputies to the 12th Supreme Peoples’ Assembly of the DPRK. The meetings nominated General Secretary Kim Jong Il as a candidate for deputy to the 12th SPA. Reporters and speakers at the meetings highly praised the immortal feats performed by Kim Jong Il, adding that it is the greatest happiness and glory of our country and the nation to have Kim Jong Il in the van of the revolution. The voters of the meetings courteously proposed the nomination of Kim Jong Il as a candidate for deputy to the 12th SPA at their constituencies and all the participants in the meetings expressed unanimous support and approval of it. [KCNA]

IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A SHAME TO RUIN SUCH A FETCHING HAIRCUT:

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il may not have undergone a brain surgery, as previously reported, a diplomatic source in Beijing said on Monday. The source said Chinese special envoy Wang Jiarui, who met Kim over a five-hour boozy lunch in Pyongyang on Jan. 23, did not see any trace of brain surgery. Wang reportedly saw no trace that Kim’s hair had been shorn trace of hair cut necessary for brain surgery or any scars on Kim’s head. Nor did Kim wear a wig in an attempt to hide it.

“Kim’s left hand was neither paralyzed nor swollen, and when we shook hands, I could feel the power in his right hand,” the source quoted Wang as saying. Kim also reportedly accepted a letter from Chinese President Hu Jintao delivered by Wang with both hands. [Chosun Ilbo]

The Chinese have a vested interest in promoting the stability of their client, of course, so take this — and all other reports about the condition of His Porcine Majesty — with a pound of salt. Or, I could put it this way: “There are things we know that we know. There are known unknowns. That is to say there are things that we now know we don’t know. But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we do not know we don’t know.”

JAPAN’S LDP POLLS AT A NEW LOW:

Approval ratings for Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso’s Cabinet hit a new low in a newspaper poll Tuesday, marking the worst level of support for the government in nearly a decade and raising concerns the unpopular leader may face a revolt from within his ruling party. [….]

Their remarks came after the Asahi newspaper said the approval rating of Aso’s Cabinet fell sharply to 14 percent from 19 percent in January, the lowest since the 9 percent support for former Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori in 2001. The disapproval rate rose to 73 percent from 67 percent.

The Yomiuri, another major daily, found support for Aso’s government falling to a low of 19.7 percent from 20.4 percent, with the disapproval rating rising by 0.1 point to 72.4 percent. [AP, via IHT]

The potential effect of a JDP takeover on North Korea policy is getting less attention than it deserves, although I’m not convinced that it would necessarily mean a softer line. On the other hand, and notwithstanding his good instincts on North Korea, PM Taro Aso is still a national embarrassment that Japan can do without.