Yokota family
Yokota family | |
|---|---|
| Born | Shigeru Yokota November 14, 1932 Sakie Yokota February 4, 1936 |
| Died | Shigeru Yokota June 5, 2020 (aged 87) |
| Occupation | Human rights activists |
| Known for | Founders of the National Association for the Rescue of Japanese Kidnapped by North Korea |
The Yokota family, husband Shigeru (November 14, 1932 – June 5, 2020) and wife Sakie (born February 4, 1936) along with their twin sons Takuya and Tetsuya founded the Japanese National Association for the Rescue of Japanese Kidnapped by North Korea in 1997. The Association supports the victims of North Korea's abductions of Japanese citizens in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The Yokotas' daughter Megumi was kidnapped in 1977 by North Korean spies; her current whereabouts are unknown.
Sakie Yokota once met with U.S. President George W. Bush to talk about demanding sanctions on North Korea and in 2013 she testified about her daughter's abduction.
In 2014, the Yokotas met Megumi's Korean daughter.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]
On September 19, 2017, President of the United States Donald Trump, in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly, included Yokota in a series of accusations against the North Korean government, saying, "We know it kidnapped a sweet 13-year-old Japanese girl from a beach in her own country to enslave her as a language tutor for North Korea's spies."
On April 2018 Shigeru Yokota was Hospital in Kawasaki in Kanagawa Prefecture causing poor health.
On June 5, 2020, Shigeru Yokota died at age 87. He had been hospitalized in Kawasaki for more than two years. [10][11]
After Nobuko Masumoto died of Cancer in December 12,2017 Kagoshima.
See also
References
- ^ "Opinion | Signals From North Korea". April 11, 2014 – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ "North Korea abductee meeting praised". March 17, 2014 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 15, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ McKirdy, Euan. "Abductee's parents finally meet North Korean granddaughter". CNN.
- ^ "Elderly Japanese couple meet family of daughter kidnapped by N Korea".
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on October 31, 2014. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "North Korean daughter of Japanese abductee could visit Japan this year". July 1, 2014 – via www.reuters.com.
- ^ Fackler, Martin (March 16, 2014). "Years After Abduction by North Korea, a Reunion" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ "Japanese mother tells of heartbreak years after North Korea abducted 13-year-old daughter". August 29, 2013 – via www.reuters.com.
- ^ "Yokota Shigeru, father of abductee, dies at 87". NHK WORLD.
- ^ "Shigeru Yokota, father of North Korea abductee Megumi, dead at 87". The Japan Times. June 5, 2020.
External links
- NARKN website
- "Parental love versus Kim Jong-il", By Kosuke Takahashi of Asia Times Online, April 28, 2009.
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