Kim Jong Un paper toy released, pulled out amid criticisms

Papercraft toy figures of the leaders of the United States, South Korea, North Korea, and China were released by a South Korean media firm last month. The North Korean leader Kim Jong Un figure was pulled out from the sales after criticisms emerged toward the company for portraying him as a peace leader while ignoring the fact that North Korea faces dire human rights violations. Photo captured from the website

SEOUL, Nov. 26 (UPI) — A South Korean education media firm released paper toy craft kits, featuring leaders of the United States, South and North Korea and China but pulled out North Korean leader Kim Jong Un from the sales following harsh criticisms.

EBS Media, an affiliate of the South Korea education TV network EBS, released do-it-yourself papercraft kits for toy figures of the United States President Donald Trump, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Chinese President Xi Jinping last month, introducing them as “leaders opening the peace era of the Korean Peninsula.”

However, it withdrew Kim from the figure series after the public criticized that the kit emphasized him as a peace leader while ignoring the fact that his country faces dire human rights violations, South Korean media Chosun Ilbo reported Monday.

The papercraft toy kit, with which kids can make a three-dimensional figure of the North Korean leader, portrayed him wearing the horn-rimmed glasses with his trademark hairstyle in his black Mao suit under the title of “the world’s youngest leader.”

The kit is no longer available on the website.

According to the Chosun Il bo report, the product described him as the second son born to the former North Korean leader of Kim Jong Il. After being picked as the successor, he secured his position as the North Korea leader in 2011, according to an introduction in the kit.

It characterized him with “high interests in basketball, sports, movies, and computer.” He is portrayed to have “set a milestone in world peace” with “a pledge in the Panmunjom Declaration for denuclearization of North Korea and to improve North-South relations.”

An EBS media official said the company made the kits as the inter-Korean relation has improved recently.

“That I think was a bit early,” he was quoted as saying in the report.

“We decided to stop the sales of the products and collect those already distributed in the market,” the official said.

U.S. President Donald Trump, in his trademark red necktie and blond hair, is portrayed with his trademark hand gesture of raising his index finger. He is introduced as a “talented businessman and the United States President”

Chinese President Xi Jinping, in his red necktie waving his right hand, is described as “the Chinese leader who makes effort to create strong China.”

South Korean President Moon Jae-in, in his gray hair and glasses, is described as “the President of the Republic of Korea who thinks about people first.”


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