Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of Kim Jong-un, chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea was poisoned by two women, suspected as North Korean agents, in a Malaysia airport. This incident is creating quite a stir. The two women approached Kim Jong-nam when he was standing in line since 8 a.m. to board a plane for Macau at 9 a.m. on February 13 and forced him to inhale poison. Kim died while being transported to a hospital. The incident raised questions with media reports claiming that the two women on the run are of Vietnamese nationality, but there is no evidence to infer any other possibility than that the act was carried out by North Korea. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) also analyzed that the North's intelligence authority carried out a "standing order (an order that remains valid until it has been withdrawn)" made after Kim Jong-un came to power, in a meeting of the National Assembly's Intelligence Committee yesterday. The intelligence agency announced that there was another murder attempt five years ago in 2012. It is the general view of the international community including China that the North Korean regime removed Kim Jong-nam for he was a difficult figure who criticized Kim Jong-un's succession of power.

Kim Jong-un has continued to execute and purge senior officials including Defense Minister Hyon Yong-chol and Vice Premier Kim Yong-jin as well as his uncle-in-law Jang Song-thaek, former vice chairman of the National Defense Commission. Now by poisoning his brother, Kim Jong-nam in a public place overseas in broad daylight, Kim Jong-un has proven that he is capable of anything. The latest incident confirms that North Korea has an abnormal regime maintained by heredity and a reign of terror unthinkable in a modern state, and that Kim Jong-un is a leader who doesn't hesitate before inhumane actions. We cannot silence concerns of uncertainty and instability in the Kim Jong-un regime, which does not hesitate to commit crimes indifferent to the eyes of the international community and Pyongyang's relations with China.

North Korea is far from a transparent society, and it is impossible to know what is going on inside the hermit state. Currently, the North is just a couple of steps before completing its development of nuclear weapons and missiles aimed at the United States. In the U.S., people have been suggesting preemptive strikes on North Korea since the inauguration of President Donald Trump. At this point, South Korean citizens are bound to take note of North Korea. The government has an obligation to maintain solid readiness and ease the citizens' unrest. Right now, the government needs to remain calm until Malaysia officially announces the results of their investigation of the latest incident. They should not jump to conclusions claiming that there will be change in the future of the North Korean regime, but they should absolutely refrain from making the citizens nervous by letting groundless speculations run rampant.

The latest incident is not the product of a power struggle inside the hermit state, and we cannot conclude that it is directly related to security. Thus the behavior of some within the ruling party who are trying to turn this issue into a security issue cannot be tolerated. We all need to realize that our nation is at a critical moment, with President Park's impeachment trial in progress and a presidential election up ahead.