In a rare display of emotion, North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un teared up while addressing thousands of women at the first National Mothers' Meeting in Pyongyang.
Urging women to consider it their duty to combat the nation's declining birth rate, Kim Jong Un wiped away tears with a handkerchief as he emphasized the importance of preventing further decline and promoting good childcare.
The emotional event, marked by both the leader and attendees shedding tears, addressed social tasks, including instilling communist party values in children.
Kim Jong Un referred to the meeting as "no less important than a party congress," underlining the gravity of the nation's demographic concerns.
With North Korea's last census released in 2008, estimates now suggest a population of 25.7 million, adding urgency to the leader's emotional plea