North Korean leader Kim Jong-un recently presided over a Korean Worker’s Party Secretariat meeting, focusing on disciplinary issues within the ruling party. The meeting, as reported by North Korea’s state media, aimed to rectify breaches of party discipline, including poorly conducted political meetings and binge drinking by party officials.
One of the most serious violations involved officials from Onchon County, located 60 kilometers west of Pyongyang. These officials were accused of failing to properly prepare for a local party meeting, resulting in an event that was “grossly formalistic”—a term historically used to criticize lackluster adherence to ideological principles.
Adding to their misconduct, 40 officials reportedly engaged in a drinking spree, an act deemed directly opposed to the party’s expectations of discipline and ideological commitment. While the English-language version of North Korea’s official report labeled the officials as a “corrupt group”, the original Korean-language version used stronger terms, condemning them as a “rotten group” and an “arrogant rabble.”
Kim denounced the officials’ behavior as a “political and moral” crime, stating that such actions weaken the ideological foundations of the Korean Worker’s Party. As a result, the Onchon County party committee was dissolved, and the 40 involved officials were set to face punishment, though the specifics of their penalties remain undisclosed. Based on previous cases, it is likely that ideological re-education will be part of their corrective measures.
Accusations of alcohol-related misconduct have been used in North Korea’s political purges for decades. In 1955, former Minister of Post and Telecommunications Pak Il-u was similarly discredited, expelled from the party, and imprisoned after being accused of alcoholism and immoral behavior. While alcohol is not illegal in North Korea, and is widely used for celebrations, funerals, and state ceremonies, excessive drinking by officials is often framed as a threat to party discipline and used as grounds for removal.
This latest crackdown underscores Kim Jong-un’s ongoing efforts to maintain ideological purity and control over party officials, ensuring absolute loyalty to the regime’s principles and directives.
