According to defector Hwang Jang-yop, the North Korean government system became even more centralized and autocratic during the 1980s and 1990s under Kim Jong-il than it had been under his father.
Ifølge afhopperen Hwang Jang-yop blev det nordkoreanske system endnu mere centraliseret og autokratisk under Kim Jong-il, end det havde været under faderen.