N. Korea to hold 1st party congress on May 6 to solidify dictatorship

N. Korea to hold 1st party congress on May 6 to solidify dictatorship. April. 28, 2016 07:27. by 윤완준기자 zeitung@donga.com.

North Korea officially announced Wednesday that its ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) plans to hold its seventh party congress on May 6.

The party’s official daily Rodong Sinmun reported political bureau of the WPK's central committee has decided to open the seventh party congress in Pyongyang on May 6. Attention is drawn to the intention of the Kim Jong Un regime, which plans to hold the first party congress in 36 years.

A South Korean government official said that the congress is expected to last for three to four days. The North has reportedly elected 2,000 delegates to participate in the party congress.

At past party congresses, Pyongyang announced new policies and lines while conducting a large-scale reshuffle of its leadership. Attention is drawn to what policies and lines Kim Jong Un will present and how he will reshuffle the power elite in order to solidify his monolith dictatorship and grip on power in the fifth year of his reign.

The South Korean government official projected that Kim will show off his accomplishments to justify his dictatorship and unveil a mid- to long-term economic development plan to appease the public suffering from an economic depression. In addition, the official forecast the North Korean leader will likely justify his country’s nuclear possession by announcing a doctrine of building a nuclear power against international sanctions on Pyongyang. However, Seoul also projected that the party congress could undermine the North Korean regime’s stability as it mobilized excessive resources and manpower to propagate the party congress’s success amid the international sanctions and isolation.