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Korea, North Government 2018

SOURCE: 2018 CIA WORLD FACTBOOK AND OTHER SOURCES











Korea, North Government 2018
SOURCE: 2018 CIA WORLD FACTBOOK AND OTHER SOURCES


Page last updated on February 28, 2018

Country name:
conventional long form: Democratic People's Republic of Korea
conventional short form: North Korea
local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk
local short form: Choson
abbreviation: DPRK
etymology: derived from the Chinese name for Goryeo, which was the Korean dynasty that united the peninsula in the 10th century A.D.; the North Korean name "Choson" means "[Land of the] Morning Calm"

Government type:
single-party state; official state ideology of "Juche" or "national self-reliance

Capital:
name: Pyongyang
geographic coordinates: 39 01 N, 125 45 E
time difference: UTC+8.5 (13.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
note: on 15 August 2015, North Korea reverted to UTC+8.5, a time zone that had been observed during pre-colonial times

Administrative divisions:
9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 3 cities (si, singular and plural)
provinces: Chagang, Hambuk (North Hamgyong), Hamnam (South Hamgyong), Hwangbuk (North Hwanghae), Hwangnam (South Hwanghae), Kangwon, P'yongbuk (North Pyongan), P'yongnam (South Pyongan), Ranggang
cities: Namp'o, P'yongyang, Rason
note: Namp'o is sometimes designated as a metropolitan city, P'yongyang as a directly controlled city, and Rason as a city

Independence:
15 August 1945 (from Japan)

National holiday:
Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948)

Constitution:
previous 1948, 1972; latest adopted 1998; revised 2009, 2012, 2013 (2016)

Legal system:
civil law system based on the Prussian model; system influenced by Japanese traditions and Communist legal theory

International law organization participation:
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Citizenship:
citizenship by birth: no
citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of North Korea
dual citizenship recognized: no
residency requirement for naturalization: unknown

Suffrage:
17 years of age; universal and compulsory
[see also: Suffrage country ranks ]

Executive branch:
chief of state: Supreme People's Assembly President KIM Yong Nam (since 5 September 1998); note - functions as the technical head of state and performs related duties, such as receiving ambassadors' credentials
head of government: State Affairs Commission Chairman KIM Jong Un (since 17 December 2011); note - functions as the commander-in-chief and chief executive
cabinet: Cabinet or Naegak members appointed by the Supreme People's Assembly except the Minister of People's Armed Forces
elections/appointments: chief of state and premier indirectly elected by the Supreme People's Assembly; election last held on 9 March 2014 (next election NA)
election results: KIM Jong Un reelected unopposed
note: the Korean Workers' Party continues to list deceased leaders KIM Il Sung and KIM Jong Il as Eternal President and Eternal General Secretary respectively

Legislative branch:
description: unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members directly elected by absolute majority vote to serve 5-year terms); note - the Korean Workers' Party selects all candidates
elections: last held on 9 March 2014 (next to be held in March 2019)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - KWP 607, KSDF 50, Chondoist Chongu Party 22, Chongryon 5, religious associations 3; ruling party approves a list of candidates who are elected without opposition; KWP, KSDP, Chondoist Chongu Party, and Chongryon are part of the DFRF; a token number of seats are reserved for minor parties

Judicial branch:
highest court(s): Supreme Court or Central Court (consists of one judge and 2 "People's Assessors" or for some cases, 3 judges)
judge selection and term of office: judges elected by the Supreme People's Assembly for 5-year terms
subordinate courts: lower provincial courts as determined by the Supreme People's Assembly

Political parties and leaders:
major parties: Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland or DFRF Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Jong Un] General Association of Korean Residents in Japan or Chongryon
minor parties: Chondoist Chongu Party (under KWP control) Social Democratic Party or KSDP [KIM Yong Dae] (under KWP control)

Political pressure groups and leaders:
none

International organization participation:
ARF, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IMSO, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
none; North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
none; note - Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang represents the US as consular protecting power

Flag description:
three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star; the broad red band symbolizes revolutionary traditions; the narrow white bands stand for purity, strength, and dignity; the blue bands signify sovereignty, peace, and friendship; the red star represents socialism

National symbol(s):
red star, chollima (winged horse); national colors: red, white, blue

National anthem:
name: "Aegukka" (Patriotic Song)
lyrics/music: PAK Se Yong/KIM Won Gyun
note: adopted 1947; both North Korea's and South Korea's anthems share the same name and have a vaguely similar melody but have different lyrics; the North Korean anthem is also known as "Ach'imun pinnara" (Let Morning Shine)


NOTE: 1) The information regarding Korea, North on this page is re-published from the 2018 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Korea, North Government 2018 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Korea, North Government 2018 should be addressed to the CIA.
2) The rank that you see is the CIA reported rank, which may habe the following issues:
  a) The assign increasing rank number, alphabetically for countries with the same value of the ranked item, whereas we assign them the same rank.
  b) The CIA sometimes assignes counterintuitive ranks. For example, it assigns unemployment rates in increasing order, whereas we rank them in decreasing order






This page was last modified 28-Feb-18
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