Kim Jong Un , general secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea, always pays close attention to the planting of trees and their protection and puts his heart and soul into turning the whole country into forests and gardens.

Dig and plant trees personally

In March Juche 101 (2012), the General Secretary visited a unit of the Korean People’s Army and planted Korean spruce and magnolia he had brought with him.

That day he told the accompanying officials to plant trees with him as it was tree-planting day.

As he looked round for a suitable place to plant trees, he saw freshly dug holes nearby. He had a disapproving look on his face. He said to the officials that the holes had already been dug to plant trees and it was an act of formalism. On TV cadres are seen planting trees in the holes that had already been dug and it was not tree planting, he noted, adding that it is really tree planting when they themselves dig the holes and plant trees.

Then he selected a suitable place and carefully planted trees, saying that tree planting is an ennobling undertaking to turn the whole country into forests and gardens.

Developing afforestation and forest protection into all-people movement

One day in November Juche 103 (2014), the General Secretary visited the Central Tree Nursery under the Ministry of Land and Environment Protection.

That day he pointed out the fact that the afforestation and the protection and management of forests, precious resources of the country and wealth to be handed down to the rising generations, were not undertaken properly, ardently calling on the whole Party, the entire army and all the people to turn out for a reforestation campaign, regarding it as a war for ameliorating the nature as they had built the country from on the debris during the post-war reconstruction.

He continued to say that it is important to plant trees on a large scale and protect the forests and supervise forest management strictly from the viewpoint that the protection of forests means that of soil, ecological environment and the economy in order to achieve success in forest restoration.

He stressed the need to vigorously conduct such mass movements as those for creating “forests of socialist patriotism” and winning the title of model county in afforestation throughout society, noting again that the planting and protection of forests, our noble duty and the most important patriotic undertaking for the future of the country and its eternal prosperity, should be waged as an all-people movement.

Pride and happiness

The General Secretary visited Tree Nursery No. 122 in December Juche 104 (2015).

That day he said as the forest restoration is a patriotic undertaking for the everlasting prosperity of the country and a long-term task that we have to look forward to the future ten years later, we should not slacken the pace of reforestation for the mere reason that no success is noticeable after planting trees in a few years. Though we work hard today, we have to think of the future of the country when the mountains and fields will be covered with green foliage and plant and tend every tree with all sincerity, he noted.

He also said that if the whole country is covered with forests and gardens, the rising generations would enormously benefit from them and that they would talk in the future about the validity and vitality of the WPK policy which set tree planting as an important state affair and a strategic goal.

Then he solved all problems arising in modernizing the tree nursery to be a world-class and labour- and land-saving tree nursery whose sapling production is put on a scientific, industrial and intensive basis and automated and mechanized on a high level on the spot.

And he said that he was very pleased to do such work for the successful forest restoration, a patriotic undertaking for the eternal prosperity that we must do for the rising generations, and that it was the pride and happiness.