SEOUL June 24 Kyodo Japanese and ...

SEOUL June 24 Kyodo

Japanese and southward Korean lawmakers supporting efforts of the families of compatriots North Korea abducted to retrieve their missing relatives agreed Tuesday to cooperate with each other onward the issue.

In the first meeting of legislators from the brace countries to discuss the abduction issue, the toward the south Koreans expressed hope of drawing more attention to the matter in their land based on Japan's experience.

In southern Korea, the abduction issue has been ''left forward the back burner,'' Rhee In Je of toward the south Korea's opposition United Liberal Democrats party said at the beginning of the meeting at a Seoul hotel

From Japan, Katsuei Hirasawa of the governing Liberal Democratic Party asserted pleasure that the two countries had an opportunity to coordinate with each other upon the issue.

in succession Monday, Hirasawa and three other Diet members arrived in Seoul for a three-day visit, together with relatives of three Japanese abducted by means of North Korea in the late 1970 and said to have died there, to boost cooperation with southerly Koreans on the abduction issue.

Shigeru Yokota, whose daughter Megumi was kidnapped and taken to North Korea from Niigata in 1977 at age 13 urg the southward Korean lawmakers to work to release their abducted compatriots.

The southward Korean government recognizes 486 of its nationals as having been abducted through the North, but has been passive with North Korea in like manner as to avoid provoking it.

Five Japanese abduction victims go [i]or[/i] come backed to Japan last October for the first time in 24 years. The fate of eight others Pyongyang admitted to having abducted or lur to the North remains unclear.

Last September, North Korea told Japan the eight have died, further their families reject the claim, saying there is insufficient evidence.

Tokyo recognizes 15 Japanese citizens as having been abducted by means of the North.

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