This is part of a larger series examining some of North Korea’s key state institutions. The series has also covered the State Affairs Commission, the Central Military Commission, as well as the Politburo and the Central Committee.

One of North Korea’s most contradictory organizations is its parliament, the Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA). In theory, it is the country’s most powerful organ, with the Constitution giving it the power to dismiss the leader with a single vote of non-confidence. In practice, however, it is completely powerless: it exists to endorse the Party’s decisions