North Korea:
Government

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Country name	Definition conventional long form: Democratic People's Republic of Korea conventional short form: North Korea local long form: Choson-minjujuui-inmin-konghwaguk local short form: Choson abbreviation: DPRK
Government type	Definition Communist state one-man dictatorship
Capital	Definition name: Pyongyang geographic coordinates: 39 01 N, 125 45 E time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions	Definition 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 4 municipalities (si, singular and plural) provinces: Chagang-do (Chagang), Hamgyong-bukto (North Hamgyong), Hamgyong-namdo (South Hamgyong), Hwanghae-bukto (North Hwanghae), Hwanghae-namdo (South Hwanghae), Kangwon-do (Kangwon), P'yongan-bukto (North P'yongan), P'yongan-namdo (South P'yongan), Yanggang-do (Yanggang) municipalities: Kaesong-si (Kaesong), Najin Sonbong-si (Najin-Sonbong), Namp'o-si (Namp'o), P'yongyang-si (Pyongyang)
Independence	Definition 15 August 1945 (from Japan)
National holiday	Definition Founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), 9 September (1948)
Constitution	Definition adopted 1948; completely revised 27 December 1972, revised again in April 1992, and September 1998
Legal system	Definition based on Prussian civil law system with Japanese influences and Communist legal theory; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage	Definition 17 years of age; universal
Executive branch	Definition chief of state: KIM Jong Il (since July 1994); note - on 3 September 2003, rubberstamp Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) reelected KIM Jong Il chairman of the National Defense Commission, a position accorded nation's "highest administrative authority"; SPA reelected KIM Yong Nam president of its Presidium also with responsibility of representing state and receiving diplomatic credentials head of government: Premier KIM Yong Il (since 11 April 2007); Vice Premiers KWAK Pom Gi (since 5 September 1998), JON Sung Hun (since 3 September 2003), RO Tu Chol (since 3 September 2003), THAE Jong Su (since 16 October 2007) cabinet: Naegak (cabinet) members, except for Minister of People's Armed Forces, are appointed by SPA elections: last held in September 2003 (next to be held in September 2008) election results: KIM Jong Il and KIM Yong Nam were only nominees for positions and ran unopposed
Legislative branch	Definition unicameral Supreme People's Assembly or Ch'oego Inmin Hoeui (687 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections: last held 3 August 2003 (next to be held in August 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; ruling party approves a list of candidates who are elected without opposition; some seats are held by minor parties
Judicial branch	Definition Central Court (judges are elected by the Supreme People's Assembly)
Political parties and leaders	Definition major party - Korean Workers' Party or KWP [KIM Jong Il]; minor parties - Chondoist Chongu Party [RYU Mi Yong] (under KWP control), Social Democratic Party [KIM Yong Dae] (under KWP control)
Political pressure groups and leaders	Definition none
International organization participation	Definition ARF, FAO, G-77, ICAO, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, IMO, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Diplomatic representation in the US	Definition none; North Korea has a Permanent Mission to the UN in New York
Diplomatic representation from the US	Definition none; note - Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang represents the US as consular protecting power
Flag description	Definition three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in white; on the hoist side of the red band is a white disk with a red five-pointed star