Ri Gang, the uncle of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has revealed details of the inner workings of the North, including that he and his wife defected to the United States due to the mercilessness of those in power.
 
In a telephone interview with KBS, Ri, who recently filed a defamation suit against North Korean defectors in the South, also said Kim Jong-un's mother's name is Ko Yong-hee, not Young-hee as generally reported.
 
It had been widely regarded that her name had a Chinese character meaning flower petals. However, Ri clarified that both Yong-hee and her sister Yong-suk, who is his wife, share the Chinese character ‘yong,’ meaning face, in their names. 

Ri added that his wife took care of a teenage Kim Jong-un for two years beginning in 1996 when Kim was attending school in Switzerland.
 
He said Kim was magnanimous, liked sports and displayed leadership at the time.
 
Ri said he and his wife went to the United States to look for a hospital to treat an illness she was suffering from, but decided to seek asylum to avoid those in power in the North due to their mercilessness and transience.
 
Ri also revealed that Kim Jong-il's eldest son Kim Jong-nam is virtually persona non grata in the North.
 
He added that rumors spread by North Korean defectors that the Ko sisters expelled Jong-nam from the North or that he and his wife ran off with Kim Jong-il's slush funds were groundless, citing the rumors as motivation for the defamation suit.
 
Ri declined to answer questions on the execution of Jang Song-thaek, saying it was a sensitive issue and that he wasn't informed on the matter. Jang was the husband of Kim Kyong-hui, Kim Jong-il's sister.