Kaoru Hasuike, one of the five known surviving Japanese abductees who returned home in October after being kidnapped to North Korea 24 years ago, said he was ordered by North Korean authorities before his homecoming to urge relatives in Japan to join him in Pyongyang, his brother said.
In a video message recorded by a Japanese government mission to Pyongyang, Hasuike said he wanted his parents to visit him in the North Korean capital.
The message was recorded prior to his Oct. 15 homecoming.
Hasuike's brother, Toru, told a public gathering in Kashiwazaki, Niigata Prefecture, on Sunday that Hasuike revealed to him the day before that his remarks to the government mission were based on orders by North Korean authorities.