North Korea held a state funeral on Dec. 28 and a memorial ceremony on Dec. 29 in Pyongyang for its leader Kim Jong Il, who died on Dec. 17 at age 69.
Representatives of every field of endeavor voiced ardent support for the deceased leader's third son, Kim Jong Un, as their new leader and called on the young Kim to "carry on the great undertaking of the revolution."
The new Kim Jong Un regime has started in North Korea with the world watching anxiously, wondering in what direction the hermetic country will move now.
North Korea's state-controlled news media have started publishing more reports that praise the new leader.
Kim Jong Un issued an order to stop a military drill after his father's death and continued to receive foreign condolence callers, according to media reports. The young Kim also met with a South Korean mission making a condolence visit to the country, led by the widow of former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung.
North Korean media have also showered the new leader with honorific titles, including "supreme leader," "the sun of the 21st century" and "supreme commander of the military."
North Korea is apparently trying to emphasize Kim Jong Un's legitimacy as the successor to his father and a smooth transfer of power.
Such efforts appear to reflect a certain degree of anxiety among top officials about the fact that Kim had to take over the top leadership post only after a short period of preparation for the job.
Kim is a young man who has yet to turn 30. He has no experience in ruling a country, and there are many questions about his leadership skills and charisma.
It will be difficult for him to introduce bold new policy initiatives any time soon.
Kim will have no choice but to depend on a coterie of close aides, at least for the time being. But there will be few fresh faces among his advisers. The country's negotiations over its nuclear arms programs and talks to establish a diplomatic relationship with the United States have been led effectively by the same officials for nearly two decades.
But North Korea cannot map out a better future if the new regime, under the control of a hidden and privileged elite, just keeps avoiding changes and continues the dictatorship that has ruled the nation for decades.
None of its neighbors wants the North to remain unchanged, not even China, which, as Pyongyang's closest ally, has already expressed support for the new regime, let alone Japan, the United States and South Korea.
On Dec. 30, the National Defense Commission, the nation's supreme leadership body, lashed out at South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, warning his administration not to expect any changes from the new regime in Pyongyang.
North Korea should first change such an attitude.
The North should join the international community as a respectable member and use its new relations with other countries to begin effective efforts to revive its dilapidated economy and raise the people's living standards.
We are eager to see North Korea make good use of opportunities for change offered by the transition period for the sake of a comprehensive solution to the disputes over its nuclear and missile programs and past abduction of foreign nationals so that it can normalize its ties with Japan and the United States and secure peaceful coexistence with South Korea.
Next year, North Korea will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of its venerated founder, Kim Il Sung.
The country should realize that it cannot hope to carve out a decent future for itself unless it switches to realistic policies and builds friendly and cooperative ties with the rest of the world.
We have already learned a lot from Pyongyang's "brinkmanship diplomacy." The secluded regime will no longer be able to change the situation it is in by conducting nuclear and missile tests.
--The Asahi Shimbun, Dec. 31
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