 JCP criticizes North Korean accusation In a published statement on December 15, Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo criticized a North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman's statement of December 14 regarding the investigation of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea. The text of the Shii statement entitled "On the attitude of North Korean government" is as follows: A North Korean foreign Ministry spokesman on December 14 published a statement denouncing Japan for announcing that examination showed that the ashes that North Korea provided to Japan as the remains of Yokota Megumi were not hers, stating that these results "make us suspect that they were cooked up according to the political script carefully prearranged to serve a particular purpose." He also suggested that North Korea's fact-finding committee may stop its activity concerning abductees still missing and refuse to sit with Japan at the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program. This attitude is unjustifiable. Based on scientific evidence obtained from forensic tissue tests and DNA tests, Japan has confirmed that the ashes given by North Korea were someone else's. Japan has every reason to scrutinize the materials provided by North Korea to ascertain whether they are accurate evidence materials and point out any doubts about them based on findings. If North Korea finds the examination results unacceptable, they should present Japan with their opinion and the reasons for it. This is how diplomatic negotiations should take place. However, the North Korean foreign ministry spokesman from the outset denounced Japan's conclusions as something "that were cooked up according to the political script." Their argument is tantamount to demanding that Japan recognize without condition anything they have presented as authentic. Such an attitude is unacceptable in diplomatic negotiations between any two governments. North Korea should remember that Kim Jong Il, chairman of North Korea's National Defense Commission, acknowledged that the materials that North Korea provided in the previous working-level talks in September 2002 included many false statements. This is why in the Japan-North Korea summit talks in May 2004, Chairman Kim promised to investigate the matter from scratch. The JCP demands that North Korea examine all the materials concerning the results of the scrutiny upon receiving them from the Japanese government and that it take all necessary steps to carry out a reinvestigation into the abductions. The North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesperson stated, "It is unimaginable that her [Megumi's] husband handed the remains of other persons to the Japanese side." However, it has been known that the so-called "husband" of Yokota Megumi is a staff member of the "special agency" that carried out abductions of Japanese nationals. This explains why North Korea has no reason to deny the results of the scientific examination in Japan, even though Megumi's remains were handed over by this man. On the contrary, all this suggests that the "special agency" has been involved in supplying Japan with fake "materials". It is also serious that North Korea has suggested using Japan's announcement of the results of the scrutiny as a pretext for suspending the activity of North Korea's "fact-finding committee" and excluding Japan from the Six-Party Talks on North Korea's nuclear development. Thus, North Korea takes an unjustifiable attitude toward the Japan-North Korea talks on the abduction issue and even tries to overturn the agreement reached by the Japanese prime minister and the North Korean leader to hold discussions on the abduction issue, and undermine the international cooperation needed in the effort to establish a nuclear-free and peaceful Northeast Asia. These only add to the lawlessness of North Korea. In order to overcome the unjustifiable attitude of North Korea, the JCP chair called on Prime Minister Koizumi Jun'ichiro on December 9 to urge the North Korean government to delegate a person who has full powers and is responsive to the resolution of the abduction issue to the talks with Japan. This is more important than ever. (end) |