A rift between the Japanese government and families of North Korean abductees has opened following Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru’s plan to launch diplomatic liaison offices as a step to solve the ongoing issue.
Ishiba, who took office in October last year, stressed the need for direct diplomatic engagement with North Korea, controversially proposing to set up offices in Tokyo and Pyongyang to facilitate discussions on the abduction issue. The proposed liaison offices aim to verify each piece of information presented by North Korea in a transparent manner.
However, the plan has been met with opposition from the families of abductees, who worry that the offices would only serve as a symbolic gesture rather than a meaningful breakthrough.
The Ishiba administration has defended its strategy as a a practical step. During a parliamentary session, Ishiba argued that since sanctions and international pressure have stalled, a new strategy is needed to build sustainable communication with North Korea.
At the first summit between Ishiba and U.S. President Donald Trump on February 8, Trump reaffirmed U.S. support for Japan’s efforts to resolve the abduction issue. Trump agreed to continue raising the issue in any future negotiations with North Korea.
Following the summit, activist Yokota Takuya, the brother of abductee Yokota Megumi, who was abducted in 1977 at age 13, welcomed the outcome, saying that Japan and the United States must join forces against North Korea’s human rights violations.
However, at a press conference held by the families of abductees on February 16, Yokota said the families “strongly feel” Ishiba’s plan is unacceptable and urged the government to push for a direct summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un instead. The families have called on Japan to refuse humanitarian aid and maintain strict sanctions until all abductees are returned.
Almost five decades have passed since North Korean abducted dozens of Japanese nationals. Multiple administrations have vowed action, yet the fate of most of Japan’s abductees in North Korea remain unknown. The Japanese government has formally recognized the abduction of 17 Japanese nationals, and considers 12 cases to remain unresolved. The actual number of abductees is thought to be in the hundreds.
North Korea, however, says that it resolved the issue in 2002, when it admitted to 13 abductions and returned five Japanese nationals to Japan. The other eight abductees, Pyongyang claimed at the time, had passed away. It has refused to offer additional information, despite Japan’s repeated requests over the past two decades.
Amid the political deadlock, grassroots organizations rally to keep the abduction issue at the forefront of Japan’s public awareness.
In Niigata prefecture, a group of elementary school children at Yokota Megumi’s former school organized an event to educate their community about the abduction issue.
In Ishikawa prefecture, activists gathered to discuss the Terakoshi Incident, a lesser-known case in which three Japanese fishermen went missing off the Noto Peninsula in the 1960s, with one later found to be living in North Korea.
But time is running out for the aging families of abductees who have spent decades fighting for answers.
The urgency of the situation was underscored by the recent death of Arimoto Akihiro, the 96-year-old father of Arimoto Keiko, who was abducted by North Korean agents in 1983 while travelling in Europe during a study program. Keiko was one of the abductees who North Korea claimed had died before 2002, but her family refused to believe that, citing the lack of evidence.
Arimoto, who was a well-known advocate for the families of abductees, died last month without ever reuniting with his daughter.
“It is truly regrettable,” Ishiba in reaction to Arimoto’s passing. “The government will use every available means to ensure the repatriation of all abductees as soon as possible.”
Yokota Takuya, who also serves as head of the Association of the Families of Victims Kidnapped by North Korea, attended a meeting of the Liberal Democratic Party’s Abduction Issue Countermeasures Headquarters on February 28. He reiterated his opposition to Ishiba’s proposal to set up liaison offices and urged the government to not fall for North Korea’s deceptive tactics.
“We cannot allow the government to unilaterally adopt a policy we do not support and allow North Korea to manipulate Japan,” Yokota urged. “Diplomacy must be handled with great caution. The idea that these liaison offices will bring transparency is completely unrealistic.”