The Nov. 16 Kyodo article "Yokota visit to Pyongyang in works?" blandly states that DNA tests on the allegedly cremated remains of Megumi Yokota that were supplied by North Korea in 2004 showed that they were not hers.
Both The Japan Times and Kyodo must be aware of the way the scientific community in the West, specifically the two main scientific journals Nature and Science, have pointed out that DNA tests on cremated remains are not possible.
Wikipedia has given more details throwing doubts on these alleged tests by Japanese authorities. The general conclusion is that Tokyo alleged those dubious DNA test results to whip up public sympathy for its claim that Pyongyang was lying when it said that all abductees other than the five returned in 2002 were dead.
On this basis, Tokyo has been able to gain general public approval for imposing policies of harsh restrictions in trade and other dealings with North Korea.
The image of the beautiful Megumi languishing in a North Korean hell has been especially effective here.
It may well be that other abductees remain in North Korea. Some may be teaching in spy schools; some may be brainwashed into not wanting to return to Japan; some may be under punishment for refusing brainwashing.
But Tokyo's imposition of those restrictions and its breaking of promises involved with the return of the initial five, in particular the refusal to open a relations office in Pyongyang that could help the search for missing abductees, has made it unlikely there can be any progress in this matter.
The strange refusal by Tokyo to allow the Yokota parents to visit Megumi's daughter in Pyongyang, Hye Gyong, adds to the suspicions about Tokyo's motives in this affair.
The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.