Minister of Unification Ryu Kil-jae, “North Korea must not ignore the truth of Korean War abductions”


Jun. 28, 2013
Yonhap

Minister of Unification Ryu Kil-jae said today that North Korea must not ignore the truth of Korean War abductions and must “respond to our efforts to overcome this tragic history.”

Minister Ryu attended an event entitled “The 4th Annual Day of Remembrance of Korean War Abductees” marking the 63rd anniversary of the end of the Korean War hosted by the Korean War Abductees’ Family Union (KWAFU) at the Seoul Press Center. “Resolving the Korean War that abductee issue is an important responsibility of our government and a challenge for our North Korea policy.”

Minister Ryu noted that the pain Korean War abductee families have suffered has been forgotten and ignored and has caused them further suffering. He emphasized that it is imperative that South Korean society remember the tragic history of the abductees before confirming the whereabouts and repatriating the abductees.

“It is difficult to know whether the Korean War abductees are alive or dead. Many of them have died and their family members are old,” Ryu said. He promised that the South Korean government would continue to work to confirm the whereabouts and repatriate the abductees.”

The “Day of Remembrance for Korean War Abductees” event has been held annually since 2010, but this is the first time a minister of unification has been in attendance.

“Despite the existence of large amounts of testimony and documents, the North Korean regime has continued to deny that civilian abductions ever took place during the Korean War,” said Lee Mi-Il, the president of KWAFU. “Legal action against the perpetrators of North Korea’s savage campaign of abduction will have to be taken with the cooperation of South Korea and the international community.”

The hundreds of family members of Korean War abductees who attended the event lay carnations in front of a large poster with the pictures of those who had been abducted.

Recently, the National Committee on Investigating Abductions during the Korean War held a series of 10 meetings and recognized 274 people as Korean War abductees. There are currently 2,265 people who have been officially recognized as Korean War abductees.