The Supreme Leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un, has reportedly fired his personal photographer and removed him from the Workers' Party of Korea.
Supreme violations
According to a Daily NK report, the photographer, known only by his surname Ri, was filming Kim voting during the Supreme People's Assembly election on March 10.
While taking photos of Kim, the photographer stood in front of the leader for about three seconds.
During this time, the photographer's presence blocked Kim's body from the crowd -- an action that the North Korean authorities deemed as damaging to Kim's "Supreme Dignity".
A source speaking to Daily NK added that Ri was guilty of "adjusting the angle so that the camera’s flash covered the Dear and Respected Supreme Leader Comrade’s neck".
Other violations
Furthermore, Ri also broke two other rules that Kim's photographers have to follow:
- Photographers must not take a picture of the leader within a radius of two metres
- Photographers are restricted from taking pictures or video right in front of the leader
How dare he.
Here's a slowed-down clip capturing what happened:
And in case you missed it:
Fall from grace
Due to these violations, Ri was fired almost instantly on March 12.
This effectively demotes him to be a second-class citizen.
Previously, Ri had accompanied Kim as his personal photographer for the summit in Hanoi with Donald Trump in February 2019.
Top image screenshot from TRT World YouTube
If you like what you read, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Telegram to get the latest updates.