North Korean leader Kim Jong-un speaks during the sixth Conference of Cell Secretaries of the Workers' Party in Pyongyang, April 6, in this photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency. Yonhap

By Kang Seung-woo

The latest revisions to North Korea's ruling Workers' Party regulations indicate that its leader Kim Jong-un is cementing his own leadership style in the reclusive state, according to Pyongyang watchers here.

The changes discarded the past ideologies of the North's founder Kim Il-sung and his son Kim Jong-il ― the current leader's father ― but the creation of a new No. 2 position in the party under Kim Jong-un has little to do with a succession plan to the "Supreme Leader," they added. According to sources, the North Korean regime ratified the amendments at its eighth congress ― the first in five years ― held in January, indicating that Kim is trying to step out of his predecessors' shadows and craft his own image among the people

"At the seventh party congress in 2016, Kim Jong-un designed his own leadership system and at the eighth congress, he made public his own party-centered ruling style, while the country's ruling Juche ideology and songun policy have been dropped," said Hong Min, a senior researcher at the state-run (South) Korea Institute for National Unification.

"Juche," meaning self-reliance, is the state ideology initiated by the country's founder Kim Il-sung, while "songun" was a military-first policy pursued by Kim Jong-il.

"Unlike stressing the traditions and succession of the previous regimes in his early years at the helm, the revisions show that Kim Jong-un is seemingly trying to remove some of the old vestiges of his predecessors," Hong noted.

Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University, also said the revisions show Kim's determination to impose his own ruling style.

However, Park also said it remains to be seen if he has made a clean break from his predecessors in order to display his own power and political grip.

"The revised regulations also stipulate that 'Kim Il-sung-Kim Jong-il-ism' is the only ruling ideology," Park said.

Officials of the ruling Workers' Party of North Korea hold a meeting during its eighth congress in Pyongyang in this Jan. 12 photo released by the North's official Korean Central News Agency. Yonhap

The creation of the new position of party first secretary is raising speculation that Kim Jong-un is considering designating a successor, although he is in still his 30s. Kim used to hold the "first secretary" title from 2012 to 2016 before he received the title of party chairman.

However, the experts said such speculation goes too far.

"The creation of the position seems to be aimed at easing Kim Jong-un's burden in dealing with state affairs or take his place in his absence," Hong said. "Considering his age, he is expected to hold on to power for a long time, so he doesn't need a second-in-command."

Park also said, "Under North Korea's system, it is not feasible to formalize an official No. 2 person. Rather, it reflects Kim Jong-un's confidence in his tight grip on power."

The previous party rules stipulated, "The pressing objective of the Workers' Party of Korea is to build a strong and prosperous socialist nation in the northern half of the Korean Peninsula, and achieve the tasks of national liberation and a democratic revolution on a nationwide scale."

However, the revised rules say the objective is "to build a wealthy, strong and civilized socialist nation in the northern half of the peninsula, and achieve the tasks of independent and democratic development on a nationwide scale." It also deleted the expression of "national liberation and a democratic revolution," raising speculation that North Korea has given up its long-held drive for the unification of the two Koreas under "Communism" and is now pursuing the co-existence of two different states on the peninsula.

"When North Korea usually refers to nationwide scale, it counts South Korea as its territory," Hong said.

He added that the deletion of "revolution" was part of updating outdated words contained in the party's regulations.

"There may be no country in the world in which their parties still use the word in their regulations. That would be seen as an abnormal country," Hong commented.

Park said, "The new rules also stipulate that the ultimate objective is to build a communist society, so we cannot see it as North Korea giving up its goal. It is just another expression."