In the North Korean government, the Cabinet is the administrative and

executive body The Executive, also referred as the Executive branch or Executive power, is the term commonly used to describe that part of government which enforces the law, and has overall responsibility for the governance of a state. In political systems ba ...

. The

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

consists of three branches: administrative, legislative, and

judicial The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudication, adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and app ...

. However, they are not independent of each other, but all branches are under the exclusive political leadership of the

Workers' Party of Korea The Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is the founding and sole ruling party of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea. Founded in 1949 from the merger of the Workers' Party of North Korea and the Workers' Party of ...

(WPK).

Institutions

The leader must work through various agents and their institutions, which has the power to delay, modify, or even resist the leader's orders. These institutions may set the overall tone and direction for North Korea's foreign and domestic policy, make suggestions, offer policy options, and lobby Kim himself. The government is also confirmed by the

Supreme People's Assembly The Supreme People's Assembly (SPA; ) is the unicameral legislature of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), commonly known as North Korea. It consists of one deputy from each of the DPRK's 687 constituencies, elected to five-year ...

(SPA). The Premier, who appoints three Vice Premiers and the government's ministers, heads the cabinet. The government is dominated by the ruling

(WPK) and has been since North Korea's inception in 1948. The Cabinet now has the right to supervise and control the Local People's Committee (LPC) with regard to local economies and administration. As the State Administrative Council (SAC) was replaced by the Cabinet, the

Local Administrative and Economic Committee Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States * Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administra ...

(LAEC) was abolished and its functions regarding local politics transferred to the LPC. Under WPK former General Secretary

Kim Jong-il Kim Jong-il (; ; ; born Yuri Irsenovich Kim;, 16 February 1941 – 17 December 2011) was a North Korean politician who was the second supreme leader of North Korea from 1994 to 2011. He led North Korea from the 1994 death of his father Kim ...

, the cabinet's power was elevated to equal status with Workers' Party of Korea and

Korean People's Army Ground Force The Korean People's Army Ground Force (KPAGF; ) is the main branch of the Korean People's Army, responsible for land-based military operations. History The Korean People's Army Ground Force was formed on August 20, 1947. It outnumbered and out ...

(KPA). A party chief secretary no longer concurrently holds the post of LPC chairman, which has been taken over by a former LAEC chairman. Thus, the LPC is theoretically independent of the local party and is under the control of the Cabinet. The status of the LPC as the local executive organ, in principle, became higher than before. The

Economist Intelligence Unit The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is the research and analysis division of the Economist Group, providing forecasting and advisory services through research and analysis, such as monthly country reports, five-year country economic forecasts, ...

listed North Korea in last place as an

authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic votin ...

regime in its 2012

Democracy Index The ''Democracy Index'' is an index compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the research division of the Economist Group, a UK-based private company which publishes the weekly newspaper ''The Economist''. Akin to a Human Development I ...

assessing 168 countries.

Judiciary

North Korea's judiciary is headed by the Central Court, which consists of a Chief Justice and two People's Assessors; three judges may be present in some cases. Their terms of office coincide with those of the members of the Supreme People's Assembly. Every court in North Korea has the same composition as the Central Court. The judicial system is theoretically held accountable to the SPA and the

Presidium of the SPA The Supreme People's Assembly (SPA; ) is the unicameral legislature of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), commonly known as North Korea. It consists of one deputy from each of the DPRK's 687 constituencies, elected to five-year ...

when the legislature is not in session. The judiciary does not practice

judicial review Judicial review is a process under which executive, legislative and administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. A court with authority for judicial review may invalidate laws, acts and governmental actions that are incompat ...

. The security forces so often interfere with the actions of the judiciary that the conclusion of most cases is foregone; experts outside North Korea and numerous defectors confirm this to be a widespread problem.

Freedom House Freedom House is a non-profit, majority U.S. government funded organization in Washington, D.C., that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom, and human rights. Freedom House was founded in October 1941, and Wendell Wil ...

states that, "North Korea does not have an independent judiciary and does not acknowledge individual rights...reports of arbitrary detentions, 'disappearances,' and extrajudicial killings are common; torture is widespread and severe". North Korea's fifth and current

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

was approved and adopted in September 1998, replacing the one previously adopted in 1972. The former constitution had last been amended in 1992. Under the new constitution, North Korea is a socialist state representing the interests of all the Korean people. Criminal penalties can be stiff; one of the basic functions of the system is to uphold the power of the regime. Because so little information is available concerning what actually occurs inside of the country, the extent to which there is any

rule of law The rule of law is the political philosophy that all citizens and institutions within a country, state, or community are accountable to the same laws, including lawmakers and leaders. The rule of law is defined in the ''Encyclopedia Britannica ...

is uncertain. In any case, North Korea is known for its poor human rights situation and regularly detains thousands of dissidents without trial or benefit of legal advice. According to a US Department of State report on human rights practices, the government of North Korea often punishes the family of a criminal along with the perpetrator.

Workers' Party of Korea

The Workers' Party of Korea is organized according to the Monolithic Ideological System and the Great Leader, a system and theory conceived by

Kim Yong-ju Kim Yong-ju (; 1920 – 14 December 2021) was a North Korean politician and the younger brother of Kim Il-sung, who ruled North Korea from 1948 to 1994. Under his brother's rule, Kim Yong-ju held key posts including Politburo member in the Work ...

and

. The highest body of the WPK is formally the Congress, which last convened as the

7th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea The 7th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), the ruling party of North Korea, was held on 6–9 May 2016. Background The 7th Congress was the first Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea held since the 6th Congress in 1980. In ...

in May 2016. Although the WPK is (in theory) organizationally similar to

communist parties A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of '' The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. ...

, in practice it is far less institutionalized and informal politics plays a larger role than usual. Institutions such as the

Central Committee Central committee is the common designation of a standing administrative body of Communist party, communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, of both ruling and nonruling parties of former and existing socialist states. In such party org ...

, the

Secretariat Secretariat may refer to: * Secretariat (administrative office) * Secretariat (horse) Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred racehorse who is the ninth winner of the Ame ...

, the Central Military Commission (CMC), the

Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the executive committee for communist parties. It is present in most former and existing communist states. Names The term "politburo" in English comes from the Russian ''Politbyuro'' (), itself a contraction ...

and the

Presidium A presidium or praesidium is a council of executive officers in some political assemblies that collectively administers its business, either alongside an individual president or in place of one. Communist states In Communist states the presidi ...

have much less power than that formally bestowed on them by the party's charter.

Kim Jong-un Kim Jong-un (; , ; born 8 January 1982) is a North Korean politician who has been Supreme Leader of North Korea since 2011 and the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) since 2012. He is a son of Kim Jong-il, who was North Korea's sec ...

is the current General Secretary of the WPK. Relatively compared with other institutions of North Korea, the WPK remains to be the most ideological and views itself as the defender of the revolutionary way by emphasizing

sovereignty Sovereignty is the defining authority within individual consciousness, social construct, or territory. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the perso ...

and

nationalism Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a in-group and out-group, group of peo ...

, as well as its commitment to a

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

ideology. Therefore, in theory, the WPK opposes accommodation and economic reform of any type. *

General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea The general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (Korean: 조선로동당 총비서) is the head of the Workers' Party of Korea, the ruling party in North Korea, and considered as the supreme leader of North Korea. The general secretary ...

* Chairman of the

Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea The Central Military Commission of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (CMC) () is an organ of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) which is responsible for coordinating the Party organizations within the ...

: Kim Jong-un

State Affairs Commission

In June 2010, Kim Jong-il appointed his uncle (by marriage),

Chang Sung-taek Jang Song-thaek (January or February 1946 – 12 December 2013) was a leading figure in the government of North Korea. He was married to Kim Kyong-hui, the only daughter of North Korean Premier Kim Il-sung and his first wife Kim Jong-suk, and on ...

, as vice-chairman of the

National Defence Commission The National Defence Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (NDC) () was the highest state institution for military and national defence leadership in North Korea, which also served as the highest governing institution of the cou ...

, in a move seen as propping up his own position. Chang was already regarded as the second-most powerful person in North Korea and his appointment strengthened the probability that Kim's third son,

, would succeed him. However, in December 2013 Chang was fired from all government posts and subsequently executed. Kim Jong-un ordered the execution. In June 2016, following the 7th WPK Conference, the

Constitution of North Korea The Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea () is the constitution of North Korea. It was approved by the 6th Supreme People's Assembly at its first session on 27 December 1972, and has been amended and supplemented ...

was updated, replacing the

with the

State Affairs Commission The State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (SAC) is defined by the 2016 constitution as "the supreme policy-oriented leadership body of State power." The current president of the SAC, which is defined by the same ...

and placing

as the

Chairman of the State Affairs Commission The President of the State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea () is the head of state of North Korea.Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Article 100 The president chairs the State Af ...

. This places Kim Jong-un as the official head of state. * Minister of People's Security:

Choe Pu-il General Choe Pu-il (; born 6 March 1944) is a North Korean politician who served as head of North Korea's Ministry of People's Security. Biography In April 1992, he was promoted to Major General and to General in October 1995. After serving as ...

* Minister of People's Armed Forces: Pak Yong-sik

Party leaders

General Secretary

Presidium of the Political Bureau

Choe Ryong-hae Choe Ryong-hae (born 15 January 1950) is a North Korean politician and military officer who currently serves as Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly and First Vice President of the State Affairs Commission, holding ...

Pak Pong-ju Pak Pong-ju (; born 10 April 1939) is a North Korean politician who served as the Premier of North Korea from 2003 to 2007 and again from 2013 to 2019. He was elected a member of the Presidium of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) in 2016. Earl ...

Kim Yong-nam Kim or KIM may refer to: Names * Kim (given name) * Kim (surname) ** Kim (Korean surname) *** Kim family (disambiguation), several dynasties **** Kim family (North Korea), the rulers of North Korea since Kim Il-sung in 1948 ** Kim, Vietnamese f ...

(to April 2019),

Hwang Pyong-so Hwang Pyong-so (born c. 1946 or 1949) is a North Korean general and politician who held the rank of Vice Marshal ( ko, 차수, ''Ch'asu'') in the Korean People's Army (KPA). He was a member of the Presidium of the Workers' Party of Korea and the ...

(to 2018)

Members of the Political Bureau

*Kim Jong-un, Kim Yong-nam, Hwang Pyong-so, Pak Pong-ju, Choe Ryong-hae, Kim Ki-nam, Choe Thae-bok,

Ri Su-yong Ri Su-yong (; born 15 June 1940), also known as Ri Chol (), is a North Korean diplomat and politician, serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of North Korea from April 2014 until May 2016. Ri has served as a diplomat to Switzerland, and h ...

Kim Phyong-hae Kim Phyong-hae (, born 8 October 1941) is a North Korean politician. He was a Vice Chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and the director of the Cadres' Affairs Department of the WPK. He is a full member of the 7th Central Committee o ...

, O Su-yong, Kwak Pom-gi,

Kim Yong-chol Kim Yong-chol (; born 1946) is a North Korean general and politician who currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea for South Korean affairs and head of the United Front Department. From February ...

, Ri Man-gon,

Yang Hyong-sop Yang Hyong-sop (1 October 1925 – 13 May 2022) was a North Korean politician who served as Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People's Assembly and Chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly from 1983 to 1998 (from 1994 it was form ...

Ro Tu-chol Ro Tu-chol (, born 2 October 1950) is a Vice Premier of North Korea's cabinet and the Chairman of the State Planning Commission. During Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Trutnev's three-day visit to Pyongyang Pyongyang (, , ) is the c ...

, Pak Yong-sik,

Ri Myong-su Ri Myong-su ( ko, 리명수; born on 20 February 1934 in Myongchon, North Hamgyong) is the former chief of General Staff of the Korean People's Army from 2016 to 2018. Ri was a confidant and military aide of the former North Korean leader Kim J ...

Kim Won-hong Kim Won-hong (; born 17 July 1945) is a North Korean politician and military general. Early life and education Kim was born in what is now North Korea's North Hwanghae Province. He graduated from the Workers' Party of Korea's Kim Il-sung Higher ...

and

and Ri Yong-ho (Ocstober 2017),

Kim Jae-ryong Kim Jae-ryong (, born 1959) is a North Korean politician who served as Premier of North Korea from April 2019 to August 2020. A senior official within the Workers' Party of Korea, he has served as the director of the Organization and Guidance D ...

(April 2019)

Alternate members of the Political Bureau

Kim Su-gil Kim Su-gil (, born 1950) is a North Korean general and politician. He was the director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army (KPA) from when he replaced Kim Jong-gak in May 2018 until January 2021. Career Kim Su-gil is a ...

Kim Nung-o Kim Nung-o (, born in the late 1960s) is a North Korean politician. He is the chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) Party Committee of Pyongyang. Kim is also a full member of the Central Committee of the WPK and an alternate member of ...

Pak Thae-song Pak Thae-song (, born 14 September 1955) is a North Korean politician. He is the Chairman of the Supreme People's Assembly and a Vice Chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immor ...

, Ri Yong-ho,

Im Chol-ung Im Chol-ung (, born 27 October 1961) is a North Korean politician. Im was a Vice Premier of North Korea. He is also an alternate member of the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and a full member of Central Committee of the Workers' ...

Jo Yon-jun Jo Yon-jun (born September 28, 1937) is a North Korean politician. Jo is a candidate member of the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and former first deputy in the Organization and Guidance Department (OGD) of the Central Committe ...

Ri Pyong-chol Ri Pyong-chol (, born 1948) is a North Korean marshal and formerly a top advisor of supreme leader Kim Jong-un, who served as Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission and a member of the Presidium of the Politburo of the Workers' Party ...

, No Kwang-chol and

Ri Yong-gil Ri Yong-gil (, born 1955) is a North Korean military officer and the current Minister of Social Security. He is believed to have been in his 60s when appointed to his position as a general in 2013. Ri was made a Lieutenant General in April 200 ...

, and

Kim Yo-jong Kim Yo-jong (; born 26 September 1987) is a North Korean politician and diplomat serving as the Deputy Department Director of the Publicity and Information Department of the Workers' Party of Korea, or WPK. She also served as an alternate membe ...

, Kim Jong-sik,

(October 2017)

Secretairat of the Central Committee

*Secretary: Choe Ryong-hae, Kim Ki-nam, Choe Thae-bok, Ri Su-yong, Kim Phyong-hae, O Su-yong, Kwak Pom-gi, Kim Yong-chol and Ri Man-gon

Central Military Commission

*Chairman: Kim Jong-un **Members: Hwang Pyong-so, Pak Pong-ju, Pak Yong-sik, Ri Myong-su, Kim Yong-chol, Ri Man-gon, Kim Won-hong, Choe Pu-il, Kim Kyong-ok, Ri Yong-gil and So Hong-chan

Department of the Central Committee

*Directors: Kim Ki-nam, Ri Su-yong, Kim Phyong-hae, O Su-yong, Kim Yong-chol, Ri Man-gon,

Ri Il-hwan Ri Il-hwan (, born 1960) is a North Korean politician, a member of the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea, Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). He ...

, An Jong-su,

Ri Chol-man Ri Chol-man ( ko, 리철만, born in 1968) is a politician of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea). He is a member of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea and Chairman of the Party Committee of South Hwanghae ...

Choe Sang-gon Choe Sang-gon ( ko, 최상건, context=north, born 28 April 1953) is a politician of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. He is a member of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea and was also a member of the 13th convocation ...

Ri Yong-rae Ri Yong-rae ( ko, 리영래) is a North Korean politician. He is a member of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea. Biography Born in Jangryong of the People's Army of Korea, he wa ...

, Kim Jong-im, Kim Jung-hyop,

Kim Man-song Kim or KIM may refer to: Names * Kim (given name) * Kim (surname) ** Kim (Korean surname) *** Kim family (disambiguation), several dynasties **** Kim family (North Korea), the rulers of North Korea since Kim Il-sung in 1948 ** Kim, Vietnamese fo ...

and Kim Yong-su

Control Commission of the Central Committee

*Chairman:

Hong In-bom Hong In-bom ( ko, 홍인범) is a North Korean politician. He is a member of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea and Chairman of the Control Commission of the Party Central Committee. Biography Hong in Bŏm began his profession ...

State leaders

State Affairs Commission of DPRK

Members of the

State Affairs Commission of North Korea The State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (SAC) is defined by the 2016 constitution as "the supreme policy-oriented leadership body of State power." The current president of the SAC, which is defined by the same ...

are as follows: *

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

* First Vice President of the State Affairs Commission:

*Members of the commission: **

Kim Tok-hun Kim Tok-hun (, born 1961) is a North Korean politician serving as the Premier of North Korea since August 2020. He is also a full member on the Presidium of the Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea and served as the chief of the parliamenta ...

, Premier **

, WPK Vice Chairman for Propaganda ** General of the Army

, Minister of the People's Armed Forces ** Ri Son-gwon, WPK Vice Chairman for International Relations **

, WPK Vice Chairman for United Front Work **

Jong Kyong-thaek Jong Kyong-thaek (, born between 1 January 1961 and 31 December 1963) is a North Korean politician. He served as the Minister of State Security from 2018 to 2022, a member of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK ...

, Minister of State Security **

, Vice Chairman of the CMC, top advisor of Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un ** General of the Army

, Minister of Public Security ** Kim Yong-jae, External Economic Relations (Foreign Trade) **

, Deputy Department Director of the Publicity and Information Department

Presidium of the SPA of the DPRK

The

is as follows: *

*Vice presidents:

and Kim Yong-dae *Honorary vice-president:

, and

Choe Yong-rim Choe Yong-rim (, born 20 November 1930) is a North Korean politician who served as the Premier of North Korea from June 2010 to April 2013 and was a member of the 6th Presidium of the Workers' Party of Korea.

(since April 2013) *Secretary general of the Presidium: Hong Son-ok (since April 2013)

Supreme People's Assembly

The chairman and vice-chairpersons of the

are: *Chairman:

*Vice-chairpersons: An Tong-chun and Ri Hye-jong (April 2014)

Cabinet

Some ministers of the

Cabinet of North Korea The Cabinet of North Korea (''Naegak'') is, according to the Constitution of North Korea, the administrative and executive body and a general state-management organ in the Government of North Korea. The Cabinet's principal newspaper is ''Minju C ...

are as follows: * Premier:

(April 2019) * Vice Premiers:

(from April 2009),

Ri Mu-yong Ri Mu-yong ( ko, 리무영) is a North Korean politician and administrator. He served as Vice Premier and Minister of Chemical Industry in the Cabinet of North Korea. Biography He was born on April 8, 1948. During the 1990s to 2003 he served as d ...

(April 2014), Kim Yong Jin (April 2014),

(since April 2012),

(April 2014) *

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

: Ri Son-gwon (21 January 2020) *

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

Choe Kwang-jin Choi is a Korean family surname. As of the South Korean census of 2015, there were around 2.3 million people by this name in South Korea or roughly 4.7% of the population. In English-speaking countries, it is most often anglicized ''Choi'', an ...

Notes

External links

* * {{Asia topic, Government of, title=Governments of Asia, TW=Government of the Republic of China Politics of North Korea