North Korea's former ceremonial head of state dies

Kim Yong Nam, the former head of North Korea's rubber-stamp parliament who served as nominal head of state for more than 20 years, has died, state media reported on Tuesday. He was 97.

From 1998 to 2019, Kim served as president of the presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, a post that gave him a symbolic role as head of state.

However, the real decision-making power lay with leaders Kim Jong Il -- who died in 2011 -- and his son Kim Jong Un.

Kim Yong Nam died from multiple organ failure, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

Kim Jong Un visited his bier "to express deep condolences over his death", KCNA said.

A photo showed Kim Jong Un, flanked by senior officials, paying his respects before the bier, where the deceased man lay in a glass coffin.

In 2018, Kim Yong Nam led a North Korean delegation to the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea -- a rare trip on the peninsula where both countries technically remain at war.

Although he was the head of the delegation, South Korean media widely reported that Kim Yong Nam yielded the seat of honour to Kim Jong Un's powerful sister, Kim Yo Jong, during a meeting with South Korean officials.

The gesture sparked speculation that Kim Yong Nam had retained positions in North Korea's purge-prone political scene for decades by showing deference to the family of the supreme leaders. 

AFP