2023-12-06 12:57:15
Kim Jong Un was recently filmed during a national convention in Pyongyang showing emotion and crying in the middle of his speech. The event took place against the background of the crisis that North Korea was in.
Kim Jong Un at the “Motherhood Conference” | Photo: screenshot
During his speech at a national conference in Pyongyang, the supreme leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un, made a speech. The revered leader was greeted with thunderous applause, but what he said touched on a demographic crisis the country is facing: North Korea’s deteriorating birth rate.
During his speech, Kim emphasized the patriotic duty of women in reversing the declining birth rate, and linked it to the resilience and future of the authoritarian state: “Stopping the decline in birth rates and providing good care and education to our children is a problem we must solve together with our mothers.” In addition, during his speech, he warned against foreign influences and called on parents to guide their children to work for the country and encourage them to avoid behaviors that are not “our style”, as he said.
The status moved Kim, who himself is a father of three, who could not hold back the tears. He wiped away his tears with a handkerchief while the audience, made up of thousands of women, moved along with him.
Motherhood Conference in North Korea | Photo: Reuters
According to the estimates of its rival, South Korea, as well as the United Nations Population Fund and the World Bank, North Korea’s fertility rate is on a significant downward trend. In the 1960s, North Korean fertility stood at 4 children per woman, and today it stands at around 1.8. Relying on cheap labor, this is an existential threat.To combat this negative trend, North Korea has begun offering benefits to families with three or more children, including subsidized housing, food and education.
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