Mother of North Korean abductee laments lack of progress over issue

The mother of Megumi Yokota, a Japanese woman abducted by North Korea 47 years ago, on Tuesday lamented over how her daughter was still missing after such a long time.
“I wonder why this issue has dragged on so long,” the 88-year-old mother, Sakie, said during a news conference in Kawasaki, where she lives.
Megumi was abducted on Nov. 15, 1977, at the age of 13 on her way home from school in the city of Niigata.
“I can’t see anything for so long that I don’t want to say 47 years,” Sakie said. “I would like people to think how they would feel if they were left alone after their child suddenly vanished like smoke.”
Sakie, who was hospitalized last year due to ill health, said that she gets tired easily after turning 88. “I’m doing my best just to help (Megumi), but I’m getting worried,” she said.
She said she hopes Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will work on the issue of North Korean abductees by giving priority to saving the lives of victims.
Sakie added that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is aware that the abduction issue is not just limited to Japan and that he will take action seriously. Trump met with abductees’ families in Japan during his first presidency.