Japan Press Weekly

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2017 December 20 - 2018 January 9 [POLITICS]

JCP Kasai: Gov’t should set up more communication channels to solve N. Korea abduction issue

Japanese Communist Party lawmakers on December 21 at Diet committee meetings on the issue of abductions of Japanese citizens by North Korea said that it is important to work to settle the issue through dialogue.

The Special committee on North Korean abduction and related issues in both Houses of the Diet on the day called abductees’ families as unsworn witnesses, including Yokota Sakie, the mother of abduction victim Yokota Megumi, and Iizuka Shigeo, a brother of victim Taguchi Yaeko.

At the House of Representatives committee meeting, JCP parliamentarian Kasai Akira quoted a former diplomat as saying that Japan does not have sufficient communication channels with North Korea. He asked Yokota and Iizuka what they think of the current level of government efforts to promote bilateral talks.

In response, Yokota stressed the need for “the leaders of the two countries to talk face-to-face”. Iizuka stated that “the first step is to have North Korea sit down at the negotiation table” while continuing with economic sanctions.

Kasai said that the Japanese government must not stop making efforts to have dialogue and added that the JCP will keep working to settle the problem in collaboration with the government by such means as pushing North Korea to abide by the Japan-DPRK Pyongyang Declaration.

At the House of Councilors special committee meeting, JCP member Takeda Ryosuke said that the government should hurry to resolve the abduction issue in response to an unsworn witness who said that it is a tragedy for the victims’ families to pass away without having the chance to meet with their loved ones kidnapped 40 years ago. Takeda said that dialogue in combination with economic sanctions is essential to solve the problem.

Past related articles:
> Shii calls for swift investigation by N Korea into abduction issue [July 4, 2014]
> Shii: Japan-DPRK agreement on abduction issue is significant [May 31, 2014]