North Korean gardeners sent to labour camp for failing to make Kim’s flowers bloom on birthday

Unhappy with the fact that red 'Kimjongilia'- a flower named after Kim Jong-il—did not bloom ahead of the dead dictator’s birthday, two North Korean gardeners were punished and sent to labour camp for six months.

North Korea celebrates Kim Jong-il’s birthday on February 16—also known as the Day of the Shining Star—and it is promoted as the nation’s largest holiday.

Traditionally, the streets of North Korean cities are lined with red flowers ahead of Kim Jong-il’s birthday, who died aged 69 in 2011.

But this year, gardeners struggled to get a steady supply of firewood to get the correct temperature and humidity in the greenhouses where the Kimjongilia flowers are grown, reported Daily NK News.

The manager of a farm growing Kimjongilia flower inSamsu County, in the northern Ryanggang province, was arrested on Wednesday.

He was sentenced to six months in a forced labour camp for not taking enough care of his plants, a source told the Seoul-based news outlet.

Apart from Han, another man in his 40s surnamed Choi, who was in charge of the greenhouse boilers, was also given a three-month sentence at a forced labour camp for not “properly setting the temperature.”

In North Korea,Kimjongilia is referred to as the “immortal flower” and special greenhouses cultivating the plant can be found throughout the country.

However, due to difficulties in growing the flower, some are imported from China.

(With inputs from agencies)