SOMIYA Madoka
11th grade, St. Mary's Girls' High School
Do imagine. Your close family members, friends, or lover is abducted. Suddenly they are taken to an unknown country. You should never consider the abductions issue by North Korea as another person's affairs.
It was the panel exhibition I saw at the age of ten at Niigata Airport that inspired me to think about the abductions issue. The anime "Megumi" I saw there shocked me when I was very young. I still remember the horror I felt at that time. The other day, the news came in that Mr. YOKOTA Shigeru had passed away. Now, as a high school student, I pondered about what I can do.
The abductees’ families have never given up and are still waiting for them to return. As the family members are aging, eight parents have died without being able to reunite with their children even after the 2002 Japan-North Korea summit meeting. In 2020, Mr. YOKOTA Shigeru and Mrs. ARIMOTO Kayoko died without reuniting with their daughters. Mrs. ARIMOTO used to say in her messages, "I want to stay healthy until Keiko returns." My heart ached at her words. The North Korean abductions issue must be resolved as soon as possible.
What we, as high school students, can do is recognizing, researching, and understanding the abductions issue. Ms. YOKOTA Megumi was abducted when she was thirteen years old. It is important for those in the same generation to recognize this fact and have a sense of ownership of the issue. Then, it will prevent the younger generations from losing interest. It is necessary to instill more the "North Korea Human Rights Abuses Awareness Week", which is held from December 10th to 16th every year. We should take advantage of this week to have our schools prepare a place to learn about the abductions issue and exchange ideas. In an attempt to enable all elementary and junior high school students to gain awareness about the abductions issue, I would like the school authorities to incorporate an even just one-hour class into the curriculum. Creating an opportunity for students to learn about the abductions issue and ponder on it will be a step toward resolving the issue.
My aunt was ten years old in 1977, when Megumi went missing. When my aunt was a high school student, there were already rumors in Niigata prefecture that Megumi was abducted by North Korea. However, it wasn't until many years later that they received an official confirmation of the abduction. In those days, my aunt used to casually talk about the rumor without any thought. She now regrets this and imagines that something might have changed if people, including her, had requested the government to investigate and public opinion had arisen at that time. It is, I believe, a duty of the young generations to disseminate the information without regarding it as the role of the government or adults. For example, social media is a good way to express our opinions. Political contents will necessarily draw not only favorable responses but also criticism. Nevertheless, the resulting controversy should help us to recognize the abductions issue and prevent it from being forgotten.
Here is what we could do. First, let each and every one of us get to know about the North Korean abductions issue. Then, let us have an opinion and transmit it, resuming our efforts, and, thus, making it grow into a great force. We shall never give up until the issue is resolved.