For Three Schoolchildren on Jamae Islet

The respected Comrade Kim Jong Un said as follows.

"Whatever we do, we must do it most creditably and perfectly so that the coming generations can enjoy the benefits even in the distant future, even though we may not enjoy them in our lifetime – this was General Kim Jong Il's ennobling intention and an earnest request he always made."

The story has been widely known among Korean people, that a new school was built for only three schoolchildren on Jamae Islet under the warm care of the great leader Comrade Kim Jong Il who loved our children most, sparing nothing for them.

There is a solitary islet of Jamae, too small to be marked on maps, a good distance away from Nampho.

At the late Korean feudal dynasty, a lighthouse had been built on this islet and the keepers came to live there. Being at the lowest rung of the social ladder those people suffered ill-treatment and humiliation and lived in sorrow and tears.

It was not until the liberation of the country that overflowing joy of life was brought to this lonely islet.

Thanks to President Kim Il Sung, the lighthouse keepers could also enjoy freedom and happiness, as well as those on all other islands with lighthouses throughout the country. He also provided their children with the opportunity to get the education. The only difference in their lives from those of other people was that they were lonely because of the long distance which separated them from the mainland.

Comrade Kim Jong Il dispelled even their sense of solitude. He sent them TV sets, accordions and other instruments so that the lighthouse keepers and their families could enjoy the same cultural life as townsfolk. He even sent them a motorboat so that they could travel freely to and from the mainland.

In the autumn of 1975, when he was learning about the living conditions of the lighthouse keepers throughout the country, he got to know that three children of Jamae Islet were going to primary school in Nampho, staying away from their families. Looking out of the window in silence for a while, he asked an official concerned if the children were not missing their mothers.

The official answered that, under the special care of the local Party organizations and the people, the children were studying cheerfully without feeling homesick.

Comrade Kim Jong Il was lost in deep thought for a while. Saying that nothing could replace their mothers' embraces, he said that a school should be set up on the islet. He continued that he couldn't feel easy if the children had to study away from their homes. He emphasized that a school should be built on the islet whatever cost it might need.

This was how a school was built on that islet for three children.

A few days later, a great event took place on the islet.

A ship with full load of cement and other building material and school equipment arrived. A girl teacher who had graduated from university arrived the islet with a bright smile. In several days an attractive school building for the three children was built at a spot beside the lighthouse which commands a fine view all around. The schoolroom was furnished with a blackboard, desks, chairs and all the necessary facilities.

A momentous opening ceremony for the school was held and a new school year began. Since then, the bell has been ringing to announce the school hours every day, and the voices of the children reading books and their laughter can be heard on the islet.

Comrade Kim Jong Il not only set up the school, but always took a lot of care of the children lest they should suffer any inconveniences in or out of school.

One February, he was informed of the fact that the shipment of textbooks and school supplies for the forthcoming school term was being delayed because of the ice floes which had blocked navigation. He arranged for a naval vessel to carry the load which was not bigger than a bundle. One day he learned that the girl teacher who had been to the mainland for her winter vacation was unable to return by the opening date of the new school term because sea route was ice-bounded, he sent a helicopter to transport her to the school in time.

In the meantime, one of the children was about to finish primary school.

Very pleased to hear the news, he instructed that the graduation ceremony be held, although it was for a single graduate, a ceremony as grand as one for hundreds of graduates at a large school, lest the graduate should feel sad, and that the local Party officials and educational workers should attend the ceremony.

Thus, the memorable graduation ceremony was held to congratulate the son of an ordinary lighthouse keeper, with the participation of the lighthouse keepers and their families, local Party officials and educational workers.

Like this, Comrade Kim Jong Il ensured that schools built and ringing of the bell heard wherever children are, be it in deep mountains or on a far-off island.