Parents of abductee Megumi Yokota expressed hope their daughter is still alive in light of a recent South Korean magazine report that said she was alive as of 2005.
"I don't give up the hope that my daughter is still alive," Yokota's 78-year-old father, Shigeru, said Wednesday at a rally in Yonago, Tottori Prefecture, that drew about 400 people.
The Weekly Chosun reported that registration data compiled in 2005 on citizens in Pyongyang include a woman whose birthday and family members appear to be those of Yokota's.
At the rally against North Korean abductions of Japanese, Yokota's mother, Sakie, 75, asked why the government has been unable to bring back the abductees despite the collection of 6 million signatures calling for settlement of the issue.