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Sunday May 28, 9:10 PM2ND LD: Yokota, Kim Young Nam families meet in Tokyo(Kyodo) _ (EDS: ADDING MORE INFO)The families of Megumi Yokota, a Japanese abducted to North Korea in 1977 at age 13, and of Kim Young Nam, a South Korean man believed to be her husband in the North, met Sunday night at a Tokyo hotel. The meeting came after Yokota's parents -- Shigeru and Sakie Yokota -- and relatives of other Japanese and South Korean abduction victims attended a public rally across town, calling for the return of all abductees from North Korea. Kim's mother, Choi Gye Wol, 78, and sister, Kim Young Ja, 48, arrived at Narita airport Sunday afternoon. It was their second meeting with Shigeru, 73, who visited Seoul in mid-May, and their first with his wife Sakie, 70. Accompanied by their sons Takuya and Tetsuya, the Yokotas hugged and exchanged words of encouragement with Choi and Kim and showed them photos of Megumi as well as those of her daughter Kim Hye Gyong during a press opportunity at the outset of their meeting. "Please don't fall ill. I will also continue to fight so let's go at it together," Sakie told Choi while both of them shed tears. Choi appeared in a wheelchair as she was apparently exhausted after flying from Seoul to Tokyo. Shigeru told reporters after their brief meeting that the two families will talk further when they travel to Niigata, where Megumi was snatched by North Korean agents. Kim Young Nam is said to be among five South Korean men North Korea abducted in 1977 and 1978 when they were between the ages of 16 and 18. Both the Japanese and South Korean governments confirmed through DNA analyses that Kim Young Nam is highly likely the father of Yokota's daughter Kim Hye Gyong. North Korea, which has admitted to abducting Yokota and 12 other Japanese nationals, says she killed herself in 1994 while being treated for depression. But her family believes she is still alive in North Korea. North Korea says Megumi married a man named Kim Chol Jun in 1986 and gave birth to Kim Hye Gyong in 1987. Japanese government officials met with a man presented to them as Kim Chol Jun in November 2004 when they visited Pyongyang for bilateral talks on the abduction issue. Earlier in the day at the rally held at Hibiya Kokaido Public Hall, participants adopted a resolution calling on North Korean leader Kim Jong Il to immediately return all abduction victims, estimated to be from 12 countries including Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Lebanon. The resolution also demanded that Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi impose sanctions on North Korea to step up efforts to rescue the abduction victims and urged the South Korean and Chinese governments to stop providing aid to North Korea. Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe sent a message to the rally, saying, "The government is making various efforts toward resolving the abduction issue with the premise that all abduction victims are alive, under the basic policy of using pressure and dialogue." The top Japanese government spokesman is believed to have placed emphasis on "pressure" over "dialogue" by saying the word first, although government officials have routinely used the phrase "dialogue and pressure." Some participants criticized Koizumi for not taking a tough enough stance on North Korea and expressed hope that Abe will be able to succeed him as president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and thus take the premiership in September. Choi, Kim Young Ja and members of other South Korean families, some of whom arrived in Japan on Saturday, are scheduled to meet Japanese political leaders and testify as unsworn witnesses before a Diet committee Monday. Choi and Kim are also set to hold talks with Kaoru Hasuike, 48, one of five Japanese abduction victims repatriated in October 2002, to hear about his experience of having lived in the same neighborhood as Yokota's family in North Korea. |
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