Regarding Children as Kings

The immortal exploits of Chairman Kim Jong Il, who devoted his all to the future of the country sparing nothing for the rising generations, are reflected in the bright and cheerful laughter of the Korean children who grow up with nothing to envy in the world and their cheerful melodies of learning.

The work of bringing up the rising generations is a vital issue related to the prosperity of the country and the future destiny of the nation.

Chairman Kim Jong Il said;

"The slogan ‘Love the future!' was the revolutionary creed of Comrade Kim Il Sung, who with firm belief in the prospect of the revolution and in the future devoted all his life to the future and to our younger generation."

If we neglect the work of bringing up the coming generations who will shoulder the future of the country and nation, the country and nation cannot develop, but will be subordinated to others and, in the long run, are doomed to perish.

It was the earnest instruction of Chairman Kim Jong Il, who always told officials that the younger generation could make up for the failure of our generation in other works, but if we failed to bring up the younger generation properly, it could not be supplemented and it would bring irrevocable grave consequences.

It was July 5, Juche 86(1997).

Chairman Kim Jong Il told the senior officials of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea that the pupils of primary schools were hindered in their study because of inadequate supply of pencils.

The officials concerned knew that the Pyongyang Plastic Pencil Factory, which was taking a big part in the production of pencils, was failing to normalize production due to various circumstances, but they did not regard it as a major problem because the country was undergoing difficulties.

Upon such a report, Kim Jong Il said that President Kim Il Sung discussed the issue of pencils as the first agenda of the Provisional People's Committee shortly after liberation and made sure that pencils were provided for the students despite difficult situations. He went on in a sharp tone that it was absurd to say that we could not supply the pencils properly in the current situation.

He learned in detail about the reason why the plastic pencil factory was not running properly from a senior official concerned, who said that it was because some of the equipment was outdated and some imported materials were in short supply. He also added that it seemed too minor to be reported.

Kim Jong Il said that the pencil issue is never a minor one, and that it was so important that President Kim Il Sung raised it as the top priority agenda of the Provisional People's Committee. He harshly criticized their wrong viewpoint of regarding the issue as insignificant.

He continued that the pencil issue was a question of the education of the younger generation, and that the latter led to the future of the country and nation. He also said that love for the younger generations and the future was noble traits that the revolutionaries should cherish, and that the one without it was ineligible for a revolutionary.

Then, he stressed that if we failed to provide pencils properly even at present, we should feel guilty to the coming generations, the country and the nation.

The official could not help being moved.

He had never thought that the pencil problem, which he had regarded as trivial, could have such great and serious consequences.

Indeed, it was a precious teaching of the great General who defined love for the children as one of the traits of revolutionaries that reminded our officials of what should be done for the sake of the revolution.

That day, the great General said earnestly that we should regard children as kings and there are no such precious and loving beings as children and that he was doing everything he could for them.

Indeed, in the hearts of the great General, our children were always the kings of the most prized and most dignified country. His warm care was the cradle of love for the children of the whole country in which the rosy future of the country was in full bloom.

Thanks to the warm care of the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un, who inherited the noble outlook of the great General on the rising generations and the future, the bells of learning are being heard louder in remote islands and mountain village schools, and the colorful view is ubiquitous of the "Mindulle(dandelion)" brand notebooks and the "Sonamu(pine)" brand school bags that are always enjoyed by our children.

Thanks to the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un, who is making a new history of love for the younger generations with the rays of a great sun, there will always be a bright future for the new generations of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.