Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea, made an opening speech at the Sixth Conference of Cell Secretaries of the WPK on Tuesday. The following is the full text:

Dear comrade cell secretaries,

The Sixth Conference of Cell Secretaries of the Workers' Party of Korea is being held when the whole country is in a remarkably high spirit in the efforts for implementing the decisions adopted at the Eighth Congress of the WPK and the Second Plenary Meeting of its Eighth Central Committee.

Availing myself of this opportunity of seeing you here, you comrade cell secretaries who always live and work with all the Party's members and the other working people boundlessly faithful to the Party and the revolution, I would like to extend, in the name of the Party Central Committee as well as mine, warm thanks and greetings to you, participants in this Conference, and all other cell secretaries and members of the Party for working with devotion for the strengthening of our Party and the prosperity and development of our country.

Dear comrade cell secretaries, Really heavy are the duties you have assumed in this pivotal period, an important phase in the strengthening of our Party and the development of our revolution.

This is because the implementation of the decisions of the Party congress aimed at advancing our style of the socialist cause on a higher stage by achieving a tangible change and development in the economic work, in improving the people's living standards and in all other fields even in the worst-ever situation in which we have to overcome unprecedentedly numerous challenges depends on the role played by the cells, the grass-roots organizations of the Party; it is also because the fighting efficiency of the Party cells depends on their secretaries.

The fighting programmes and policies set forth by the Party congress and the plenary meeting of the Party Central Committee can be executed to the letter and bear rich fruits only when all the organizations of the Party, its cells to be concrete, accept them correctly and turn out in a fierce struggle for implementing them.

Cell secretaries are replaced by other persons more often than not across the Party, and there are many cell secretaries who have just assumed their position.

Given the situation, it is the intention of our Party Central Committee to meet the cell secretaries across the Party at a regular interval, so as to discuss the cell work, guide and assist them and thereby consistently strive to strengthen the Party cells.

Proceeding from this, the Party congress prioritized the work of politically and practically preparing the cell secretaries who are in charge of the grass-roots combat units for executing the Party's lines and policies, and stipulated in the Party Rules that a conference of cell secretaries shall be held every five years in keeping with a Party congress.

There are many Communist and Workers' parties in the world, but it is only our Party that holds a conference of leaders of its grass-roots organizations on a regular basis so that its Central Committee can discuss work with them face to face.

To consolidate itself as a whole by strengthening grass-roots organizations is a principle of its building inherent and unique to our Party and its proud tradition.

Our Party Central Committee frequently meets the cell secretaries, who are always among the Party's members, listens to their opinions and teaches them in order to communicate with the broad sections of the Party's members and the other working people in this course and lead the revolution and construction in conformity with their opinions and requirements.

The work of thoroughly preparing the cell secretaries who are in the position of linking it with the masses by the same bond of blood relationship and organizing and enlisting the Party's members and the other working people to implement its lines and policies is the most important activity of the Central Committee of our Party.

This is why the Party Central Committee regards a conference of cell secretaries as important as a Party congress and directs much effort to ensuring it a success.

Although some successes have been achieved in the work of strengthening the Party cells and increasing their role since the Fifth Conference of the Cell Chairpersons of the Workers' Party of Korea, there are quite a few shortcomings as well.

To immediately correct the shortcomings latent in the work of Party cells is an inevitable process that should be followed by our Party for its healthy and sustainable development; and only then can our Party creditably carry out its mission as the militant General Staff that leads the revolution and construction with its roots struck deep among the masses of the people.

Even though the shortcomings may be partial and small, they should never be neglected.

To identify a practical means for turning all the Party cells, its grass-roots organizations, into united and militant collectives and apply it actively to their work so as to make the short cut to strengthening the whole Party even shorter and dynamically advance socialist construction–this is the important objective of convening this conference in a grand manner. You must be well aware of this.

Comrades, cell secretaries are hard-core members of our Party and standard bearers in implementing Party policy.

The Party Central Committee expects that you will work in a more proactive and responsible way to strengthen the Party cells.

This conference will comprehensively review and analyze work of the cell secretaries since the Fifth Conference of Cell Chairpersons of the Workers' Party of Korea, and discuss the tasks and ways for decisively improving and intensifying the work of its cells at present.

You should participate in this conference with a high level of political consciousness and enthusiasm, so as to study in real earnest how you are supposed to do if you are to inspire the Party's members and the other working people to the implementation of the decisions of the Party congress and possess the qualities befitting the primary political officials of the Workers' Party.

It is important that, while looking back on your work in combination with the issues to be discussed at this conference and your past achievements, experiences, shortcomings and lessons, you find a methodology for turning the work of Party cells decisively into the work of understanding people's minds, feelings and emotions and uniting the members of Party cells and other working people with different personalities and qualifications as firmly as your own family members are.

Participating in this conference are 10 000 persons including Party cell secretaries in various sectors, mainly the exemplary ones working at production sites, senior officials of provincial Party committees and other Party committees performing equivalent functions to them, chief secretaries of the Party committees of cities, counties and industrial complexes and relevant officials of the Party Central Committee.

Fully convinced that this conference will mark a significant occasion in further consolidating the foundations of the Party, building our revolutionary ranks into more invincible ones and bringing about a remarkable progress in implementing the decisions of the Party congress and in socialist construction, I declare the Sixth Conference of Cell Secretaries of the Workers' Party of Korea open.