Retracting comments made earlier by his government, Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori admitted during Tuesday's Diet session that a controversial proposal for finding Japanese nationals allegedly abducted by North Korean agents was not merely the personal opinion of a ruling party lawmaker.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Hidenao Nakagawa, who said Monday the plan was an expression of "personal opinion" from Masaaki Nakayama, a member of Mori's Liberal Democratic Party, also said at a news conference later Tuesday that his own comment "was inappropriate."
The moves followed fierce protests from Nakayama, who even called Mori and his aides "liars," prompting the prime minister to modify his draft statement in the Diet.