North Korean House of Cards

Table 3: Third Echelon of Power
Name Position(s) Comments
Party
Kwak Pomgi
(76)
Kim Pyonghae
(74)
• Alternate
Member of the
Politburo (since
2012)
• KWP Secretary
for Finance
(since 2012)
• Director of the
KWP Finance
and Planning
Department
(FPD) (since
2012)
• Alternate
Member of the
Politburo (since
2010)
• KWP Secretary
for Personnel
(since 2010)
• Director of the
KWP Cadres
Department
(since 2010)
Kwak Pom-gi’s elevation to the senior
ranks of the leadership was tied to Kim
Kyong-hui and Jang Song-taek with the
expectation that he could bring some
pragmatism to the decision-making
process on the economy. Following Jang’s
purge, he now most likely works directly
with Kim or through Pak Pong-ju. He
was ranked eighteenth on Jon Pyong-ho’s
Funeral Committee list.
Kim Pyong-hae’s portfolio will be critical
in the coming years as the inevitable turnover
of the Party membership takes place.
Kim Pyong-hae’s relationship to Kim
Jong-un is unclear. He allegedly belonged
to a group of Party leaders that followed
Jang Song-taek. That said, Kim Pyong-hae
survived Jang’s purge and remains in place.
He was ranked 18th and 17th respectively
on Kim Kuk-tae’s and Jon Pyong-ho’s
Funeral Committee lists.
Committee for Human Rights in North Korea
90