The Death of a Dictator

A dictatorship is defined as an autocratic or authoritarrian form of government in which a government is ruled by either an individual.

 Kim Jong-Il (16 February 1941 – 17 December 2011) was the Supreme Leader The Democratic People's of North Korea from 1994 to 2011. He succeeded his father and founder of the DPRK, Kim Il-Sung, following the elder Kim's death in 1994. Kim Jong-Il was the General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), Chairman of the National Defense Commission of North Korea, and the Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army, the fourth-largest standing army in the world.

In April 2009, North Korea's constitution was amended to refer to him as the "supreme leader". In 2010, he was ranked 31st in Forbes Magazine's List of ‘The World's Most Powerful People’. The North Korean government announced his death on 19 December 2011.

It was reported that Kim Jong-Il had died of a suspected heart attack on 17 December 2011 at 08:30 while travelling by train to an area outside Pyongyang. He was succeeded by his youngest son Kim Jong-un, who was hailed by the Korean Central News Agency as the "Great Successor”. The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) report that during his death, a fierce snowstorm paused and the sky glowed red above the sacred Mount Paektu. The ice on a famous lake also cracked so loud, it seemed to shake the Heavens and the Earth.

Kim Jong-Il's funeral took place on 28 December in Pyongyang, with a mourning period lasting until the following day. South Korea's military was immediately put on alert after the announcement and its National Security Council convened for an emergency meeting, out of concern that political jockeying in North Korea could destabilize the region. Asian stock markets fell soon after the announcement, due to similar concerns.

On 12 January 2012, North Korea called Kim Jong-Il the "eternal leader" and announced that his body will be preserved and displayed at Pyongyang's Kumsusan Memorial Palace. Officials will also install statues, portraits, and "towers to his immortality" across the country. His birthday of 16 February has been declared "the greatest auspicious holiday of the nation", and has been named the Day of the Shining Star.