"Kim Jong Un Watching the Women's Soccer Inter-Korean Match?" ... Thumbs-Up Only to South Korea, Turns Out He Was a 'Fake Kim Jong Un' [Video]

[Financial News] The man who appeared in the stands at the women's soccer inter-Korean match at the 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya dressed as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was identified as Chinese-Australian political activist and influencer Howard Lee, who has been doing the same for 13 years. He explained his reason for the impersonation, saying, "All fear disappears when you laugh while looking at the leader."
According to Yonhap News Agency on Sept. 22, Lee appeared in the stands for the final Group F match between South Korea and North Korea at Shizuoka Stadium ECOPA in Fukuroi, Shizuoka Prefecture, the previous day. He wore a North Korean-style uniform and carried a model missile. The South Korea women's national soccer team, led by coach Shin Sang-woo, drew 1-1 with North Korea.
Lee, who goes by the stage name "Howard X," also appeared in front of a North Korean cheering squad during the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea. This time, he said he showed a Japanese hair salon photos of Kim Jong Un from the front, side and back and asked for the same hairstyle.
Lee said, "I wanted to meet 'North Korean' people living in Japan," claiming that they attended North Korean schools and had been brainwashed by propaganda. In response to criticism that Koreans living in Japan might feel insulted, he countered that it was not an insult but an attempt to break the mold.
He continued, "People who saw me today will look me up on the internet and social media (SNS) and laugh," adding, "That is what we need."
About 200 North Korean supporters from across Japan, mainly students from Chosun University affiliated with the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon), shouted slogans and sang cheering songs to the beat of drums from the stands.
During the match, Lee made a motion as if throwing a missile and gave a thumbs-down toward the South Korean flag. When he approached the North Korean cheering section, stadium security personnel and Japanese police stopped him out of concern that a confrontation might occur.
Some North Korean spectators reportedly waved at Lee to signal that he should leave before giving him the finger.


[email protected] Seong Min-seo Reporter