Kim Jong-un, chairman of North Korea's State Affairs Commission, attended a performance marking International Women's Day with his wife, Ri Sol-ju, and their daughter, Ju-ae, praising women's contributions. In North Korea, International Women's Day is called International Women's Day for women.
According to the Korean Central News Agency on the 9th, Kim Jong-un visited the International Women's Day commemorative performance held the previous day at Pyongyang Indoor Stadium. North Korean media reported Ju-ae's attendance and used the expression "beloved child."
In a congratulatory address, Kim Jong-un said, "We bow our heads in deep gratitude for the toil and sincerity you have devoted quietly for the country and Namsung," adding, "With women's unique strength and talent and their supremely noble, self-sacrificing dedication, our revolution advances even faster."
He went on, "Going forward, our women will play a major role in making this country more harmonious and prosperous," adding, "The responsibility and role that women bear in (social development) are so important that nothing can replace them."
North Korean media also released images of Kim Jong-un holding Ju-ae's hand as they watched the performance. Ju-ae sat between Kim Jong-un and Ri Sol-ju.
In the front row of the seating area where the Chairperson sat were leading North Korean women figures, including Kim Yo-jong, head of the party's General Affairs Department, Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui, and Korean Central Television announcer Ri Chun-hee.
North Korea marks International Women's Day on a large scale, but the country's level of women's human rights is assessed by the international community as extremely poor. Due to limits such as the collection of accurate statistics, it has at times been excluded from human rights rankings altogether.