North Korea supreme leader Kim Jong Un was seen on television dabbing his eyes with a handkerchief during the country's National Conference of Mothers on Dec. 3, according to South Korea's The Korea Herald.
Kim reportedly became emotional while listening to a party report in a video aired by the state-run Korean Central Television, according to the Herald.
'Begging' mothers to have more babies?
Kim was presiding over the fifth iteration of the conference in the capital, Pyongyang. The conference aims to promote the pivotal role of mothers, with the previous event taking place in 2012.
Kim called for action to boost the country's declining birth rate. Reuters, citing United Nations Population Fund data, estimated that it stands at 1.8 in 2023, which is below replacement level.
Clips emerged that appeared to show Kim crying, and dabbing his eyes with a handkerchief.
The footage, shared by some users on social media platforms including Twitter (now X) and TikTok, sparked claims that Kim shed tears while telling the female conference attendees to boost the country's birth rate.
kim jong un cries while discussing n korea’s declining birth rate
turns out, jailing everyone isn’t good for demographics pic.twitter.com/2O5KIw9g2m
— ian bremmer (@ianbremmer) December 6, 2023
Some media outlets such as Sky News, Vice News, and Wall Street Journal also reported Kim as "wiping away tears" and urging North Korean mothers to have more babies.
However, other news outlets like Reuters, Yonhap News Agency, and Associated Press made no reference to Kim crying, although they did mention Kim highlighting the importance of mothers to the regime.
Or was it because of the Japanese occupation?
Other social media users offered an alternative explanation for Kim's show of emotion.
One user on X said that Kim may have teared up when referring to the harrowing experience of Korean women living under the rule of Imperial Japanese soldiers during the occupation from 1910 to 1945.
Although he did talk about declining birthrates, he shed tears due to the harrowing accounts of women brutalized during the Japanese occupation, just to clarify, it had no connection to birthrates.
Can watch the full scene here: https://t.co/YRRwioiVSD https://t.co/qzysoX5fEl
— Chrismìc Giroud (@LikeChrisss) December 6, 2023
Top image from Matt Wallace/X.