OSAKA -- The families of 10 people who Tokyo believes were abducted by North Korean agents in the 1970s and 1980s were outraged at Pyongyang's announcement this week that it was suspending an investigation into the case.
"This shows how little you can trust North Korea," said Shigeru Yokota, whose daughter Megumi disappeared from the Sea of Japan coast in 1977. "For the longest time, they refused to acknowledge that the kidnappings had taken place, and now they say they are suspending their search, in effect admitting that they did abduct them."
The Tokyo-based National Association for the Rescue of Japanese Kidnapped by North Korea, or NARKN, said Wednesday that the probable reason for the sudden announcement had to do with the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.