Despite the strong desire and 43-year search efforts of Shigeru Yokota and his wife, they were unable to realize their dream of being reunited with their daughter Megumi Yokota, who was abducted to North Korea in 1977 at the age of 13.
Shigeru, who died of old age Friday at the age of 87, traveled nationwide together with his wife Sakie, 84, to appeal for a resolution of the abduction even after entering his eighties.
The death of Shigeru, who played a central role in the Association of the Families of Victims Kidnapped by North Korea, is being mourned by those who involved with the association's efforts to bring Megumi and other Japanese abductees home.
A staff member of a group supporting the Yokotas, called the Asagao-no-Kai, told reporters Friday night in front of the condominium building where the couple lives that she was told by Sakie that Shigeru "was carried to heaven in his sleep."
The staffer went on to say, "I'd like [Sakie] to spend a quiet time for the present now that she has lost her husband who was more like a comrade-in-arms."
It was Nov. 14, 1977, Shigeru's 45th birthday. When he returned home from work at the Bank of Japan's Niigata branch office, Megumi eagerly awaited his return so that she could give him a comb as a birthday present. "Dad, from now on, you have to look after your appearance too, OK?" she said as she presented her gift.
"[Megumi] had become an adult. She had reached an age where she began to take care of the people around her," Shigeru thought. He was delighted at the concern for him Megumi showed in her early adolescence.
But the following day is when things took a turn for the worse.
When Megumi did not come home after her junior high school's badminton club practice, Shigeru and Sakie searched all over the coastal area near their house. They appeared in TV programs that featured searches for missing persons and continued to seek information on their missing daughter.
About 20 years later, Shigeru was told that Megumi had been abducted and was living in North Korea, according to a testimony from a North Korean defector. "With this, Megumi will be able to return," he thought. He established the Association of the Families of Victims Kidnapped by North Korea with seven other families of victims in March 1997 and became the association's representative.
Wearing a sash bearing Japanese characters that mean "Father of Megumi Yokota," Shigeru stood on a street, distributing handouts to appeal for a resolution to the issue. But some people knocked the handouts to the ground, while others said cold things to them regarding their activities, such as, "Does abduction really exist?"
However, their constant efforts gradually reached the hearts of the public. In September 2002, the then Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi visited North Korea to meet with the then North Korean leader Kin Jong Il. During the first summit meeting between the two countries, Kim admitted to the abduction and offered an apology, while claiming eight Japanese abductees, including Megumi, had died.
Faced with the harsh reality, Shigeru was at a loss for words and was moved to tears during a press conference. Sakie suddenly grabbed the microphone, firmly said that because the information given did not even specify the correct date her daughter died, they could not believe it.
The couple's resolute attitude toward the abductions attracted empathy and heightened interest from the public regarding the issues suddenly.
In October 2002, five Japanese abductees were returned to Japan from North Korea, but there has been no progress on the issue since then.
Under such circumstances, Shigeru was energetically engaging in activities nationwide, such as giving lectures and interviews with government officials.
Shigeru was known for his soft way of speaking, which was representative of his gentle character.
In November 2005, he began to showcase his family photos that were taken as a hobby with cooperation from Asagao-no-Kai staff members. Photos of Megumi, taken by Shigeru, were full of his love for his sole daughter and struck the heart of those who saw them. He had hoped that he would have Megumi bring the photos with her when she got married.
It was in November 2007 that he retired as the association's representative due to health problems. But he continued to give lectures nationwide even after that.
However, with his weakened legs, he could not travel to distant places, and his last lecture was given in Kyoto in March 2016. He had been hospitalized since April 2018.
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