National News Yokota's 'remains' brought home

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Japanese officials returned Nov. 15 from Pyongyang after meeting with North Korean officials with what they were told are the cremated remains of Megumi Yokota, who according to North Korea committed suicide after being abducted to the reclusive state in 1977.

The government will carry out a DNA test on the bones to determine if they really belong to Yokota, said Mitoji Yabunaka of the Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanic Affairs Bureau , who headed the week-long delegation to Pyongyang.

On the fate of 10 missing Japanese, including Yokota, North Korea repeated the same explanation it gave two years ago that eight of them died after being abducted to the North and that the two others never entered the country.

Relatives of the abductees said they still cannot accept the North's accounts.

Yabunaka said doubts remain on a number of points in North Korea's accounts of the 10 Japanese, although he noted the explanations given by Pyongyang this time were substantially different from what was presented during earlier rounds of talks.(The Japan Times)

横田さんの遺骨持ち帰る

北朝鮮で行なわれた日朝実務者協議から15日に帰国した政府代表団は、横田めぐみさんのものとされる「遺骨」などを持ち帰った。

Shukan ST: Nov. 26, 2004

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