Megumi Yokota’s Brother Urges Japan-North Korea Talks for Swift Return of Japanese Abductees

By Yuka Kumakura / Japan News Staff Writer

19:45 JST, April 5, 2024

Takuya Yokota, a representative of the Association of Families of Victims Kidnapped by North Korea (AFVKN), has urged the Japanese government to seek face-to-face meetings between Japanese and North Korean officials without any concessions from Japan.

In a press conference held at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, on Friday, Yokota said, “We hope that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will realize a Japan-North Korea summit meeting and achieve concrete and immediate return of all Japanese abductees to Japan together without having to make concessions.”

Yokota also expressed his hopes for the upcoming Japan-U.S. summit talks later this month, saying that Kishida and U.S. President Joe Biden should promise cooperation and support to resolve the abduction issue.

With the upcoming U.S. presidential election in mind, Yokota also added: “Whether Republican or Democrat, the United States has consistently viewed the abduction of Japanese citizens by North Korea as a human rights issue and pledged to work toward a resolution. Therefore, no matter who the next president of the United States will be, we hope they will continue to uphold this stance.”

Yokota’s elder sister, Megumi, was abducted by North Korea in 1977 when she was 13.

Pyongyang has claimed that, of the 12 abductees who have not returned to Japan, eight, including Megumi, are deceased, and four never entered North Korea.

In late February, the families of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea decided they would not oppose the Japan’s decision to lift sanctions on North Korea, provided that an immediate and comprehensive return of all abductees occurs while their parents are still alive.

AFVKN devised this new action plan to prompt both Tokyo and Pyongyang to take action, in light of the parents advanced age. Among the parents of the abductees, only Megumi’s mother, Sakie, and Keiko Arimoto’s father, Akihiro, are still alive, meaning the time for the parents to be reunited with their children is limited.

The plan goes further than the association’s February 2023 stipulation, which stated they would not oppose Japan’s humanitarian assistance to North Korea on the condition that all abductees are returned home immediately.

Meanwhile, in late March, North Korean state media KCNA reported that Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, said Prime Minister Fumio Kishida recently conveyed his intention to meet with the North Korean leader soon. However, she later said that Pyongyang would reject any contact or negotiations with Japan, citing Japan’s lack of courage to forge new North Korea-Japan relations.