ID :
50064
Thu, 03/12/2009 - 07:00
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/50064
The shortlink copeid
ATTN: UPDATES throughout with details, RECASTS headline)
BUSAN, March 11 (Yonhap) -- The eyes of Kim Hyun-hui, once a North Korean terrorist and now a housewife living in South Korea, were teary as she briefly hugged the son of Yaeko Taguchi, a Japanese woman abducted by Pyongyang 1978 and her former Japanese language instructor.
Kim clasped the hands of Koichiro Iizuka, 32, who was a baby when his mother was
kidnapped by North Korean agents, and Taguchi's elder brother Shigeo Iizuka, 70,
in their long-awaited meeting, only the first five minutes of which was open to
reporters who packed a room of the Busan Exhibition and Convention Center (BEXCO)
in this port city.
The venue was heavily guarded by police commandos for security.
Kim spoke in Japanese with Taguchi's family, who gave her two compact discs of
Japanese songs, a box of cheese cake, and a handkerchief. Kim also gave a gift
package, but its content was not immediately known.
The three moved to another room for a closed-door meeting. They are scheduled to
hold a joint press conference shortly after their talks.
It was the first time that Kim, who was convicted of planting a bomb on a South
Korean airliner in 1987 that killed all 115 people on board but later pardoned,
appeared for a public event since 1991.
Kim asked to meet with Taguchi's family, saying she wants to tell them about the
life of abducted women in North Korea.
No immediate breakthrough is expected, however, in efforts to confirm the fate of
Taguchi, who North Korea claims died in 1987, but Japanese authorities believe
Wednesday's meeting will help draw international attention to the biggest
sticking point in Tokyo's relations with Pyongyang.
Taguchi is one of 17 Japanese citizens whom Tokyo says were abducted by North
Korean agents in the 1970s and 1980s. In 2002, the North acknowledged abducting
only 13 Japanese citizens and allowed five of them to return home, saying the
others had died.
Tokyo has demanded that Pyongyang account for all of the abductees, setting it as
a precondition for the normalization of diplomatic ties and the delivery of its
share of energy aid promised under a six-nation deal.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)
Kim clasped the hands of Koichiro Iizuka, 32, who was a baby when his mother was
kidnapped by North Korean agents, and Taguchi's elder brother Shigeo Iizuka, 70,
in their long-awaited meeting, only the first five minutes of which was open to
reporters who packed a room of the Busan Exhibition and Convention Center (BEXCO)
in this port city.
The venue was heavily guarded by police commandos for security.
Kim spoke in Japanese with Taguchi's family, who gave her two compact discs of
Japanese songs, a box of cheese cake, and a handkerchief. Kim also gave a gift
package, but its content was not immediately known.
The three moved to another room for a closed-door meeting. They are scheduled to
hold a joint press conference shortly after their talks.
It was the first time that Kim, who was convicted of planting a bomb on a South
Korean airliner in 1987 that killed all 115 people on board but later pardoned,
appeared for a public event since 1991.
Kim asked to meet with Taguchi's family, saying she wants to tell them about the
life of abducted women in North Korea.
No immediate breakthrough is expected, however, in efforts to confirm the fate of
Taguchi, who North Korea claims died in 1987, but Japanese authorities believe
Wednesday's meeting will help draw international attention to the biggest
sticking point in Tokyo's relations with Pyongyang.
Taguchi is one of 17 Japanese citizens whom Tokyo says were abducted by North
Korean agents in the 1970s and 1980s. In 2002, the North acknowledged abducting
only 13 Japanese citizens and allowed five of them to return home, saying the
others had died.
Tokyo has demanded that Pyongyang account for all of the abductees, setting it as
a precondition for the normalization of diplomatic ties and the delivery of its
share of energy aid promised under a six-nation deal.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)
