Sakie Yokota, the 84-year-old mother of Megumi Yokota -- who was abducted by North Korean agents 43 years ago on Nov. 15 -- said she always prays for her health when she talks to Megumi's photo.
"Every year on this day, I feel really helpless. When I think back to the evening on the day [in Niigata, where Megumi was abducted,] a chill runs down my spine," she said at a press conference in Kawasaki, where she now resides.
Sakie, who lost her husband, Shigeru, in June, said: "Even though I did everything I could to resolve the issue, and even though many people worked hard, I just wondered why [Megumi] couldn't come back.
"I can't think about [my husband's death] realistically, and I feel empty-hearted," she continued.
When Sakie talks to Megumi's picture, she always ends by saying: "Please take care of yourself and stay healthy. I'll be fine, too," she said.
The government has recognized 17 Japanese nationals as abductees taken by North Korea. Sakie and Akihiro Arimoto, 92 -- father of Keiko Arimoto, 23 years old at the time of her abduction -- are still alive.
There will soon be the 200th meeting with supporters to offer prayers at a chapel that Yokota has attended every month since 2000 to pray for seeing her daughter again.
"I may end up like my husband [who was not able to see Megumi again], but I want to keep praying for her until she comes back," she said.
Sakie Yokota speaks ahead of the 43rd anniversary of her daughter Megumi's abduction at a press conference in Kawasaki on Friday.
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