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- Government
-
- Long-form name: Democratic People's Republic of Korea;
- abbreviated DPRK.
-
- Type: Communist state; one-man rule.
-
- Capital: P'yongyang.
-
- Administrative divisions: 9 provinces (do, singular and
- plural) and 3 special cities* (jikhalsi, singular and plural);
- Chagang-do, Hamgyong-namdo, Hamgyong-bukto, Hwanghae-namdo,
- Hwanghae-bukto, Kaesong-si*, Kangwon-do, Namp'o-si*,
- P'yongan-bukto, P'yongan-namdo, P'yongyang-si*, Yanggang-do.
-
- Independence: 9 September 1948.
-
- Constitution: adopted 1948, revised 27 December 1972.
-
- Legal system: based on German civil law system with Japanese
- influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review
- of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction.
-
- National holiday: Independence Day, 9 September (1948).
-
- Executive branch: president, two vice presidents, premier,
- nine vice premiers, State Administration Council (cabinet).
-
- Legislative branch: unicameral Supreme People's Assembly
- (Choe Ko In Min Hoe Ui).
-
- Judicial branch: Central Court.
-
- Leaders:
-
- Chief of State--President KIM Il-song (since 28 December 1972);
- designated Successor KIM Chong-Il (son of President, born
- 16 February 1942);
-
- Head of Government--Premier YON Hyong-muk (since NA December 1988).
-
- Political parties and leaders: only party--Korean Workers'
- Party (KWP); Kim Il-song, General Secretary, and his son,
- Kim Chong-Il, Secretary, Central Committee.
-
- Suffrage: universal at age 17.
-
- Elections:
-
- President--last held 29 December 1986 (next to be held December
- 1990); results--President Kim Il Song was reelected without
- opposition;
-
- Supreme People's Assembly--last held on 2 November 1986
- (next to be held November 1990, but the constitutional provision
- for elections every four years is not always followed);
- results--KWP is the only party; seats--(655 total) KWP 655;
- the KWP approves a single list of candidates who are elected
- without opposition.
-
- Communists: KWP claims membership of about 2 million, or
- about one-tenth of population.
-
- Member of: ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, ICAO, IMO, IPU, ITU,
- NAM, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WTO, UNIDO, WMO;
- official observer status at UN.
-
- Diplomatic representation: none.
-
- Flag: 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.
-