North Korea pays tribute to Kim Jong Un's daughter on stamp series

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Ruler Kim Jong Un with his daughter Ju Ae

Photo: STR/AFP

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un keeps his private life secret.

For several months, however, he has repeatedly presented his daughter at military events.

A new series of stamps has now been presented in North Korea, on which the same daughter is immortalized in addition to a rocket launch.

On the state stamp company's website, the girl is referred to as Kim's "beloved daughter," but her name is not given.

According to South Korean intelligence, this is Kim's second child, Ju Ae.

On parades or »behind closed doors«

Some experts see the public appearances and the immortalization on the stamps as indications that the girl should be developed as a possible successor to her father.

However, other experts consider such assumptions to be premature, as Kim herself is still young and the daughter's name has never been officially named.

It is possible that it will be used for propaganda purposes while Kim's eldest son "is being set up as his successor behind closed doors," said Yang Moo Jin of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul.

Ju Ae was first publicly presented at the rocket launch in mid-November, since then she has appeared several times at her father's side.

North Korea fired an ICBM at the military event, drawing international criticism.

Most recently, Ju Ae was presented alongside her father at a nighttime military parade a few days ago.

Pictures showed the ruler and his daughter watching the parade on Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang from a grandstand.

mrc/dpa/AFP