If only I could know his fate…

YTN News
Jun. 27, 2011


61 years have passed since the Korean War broke out. Families of the abductees who were taken to the North by force during the War are living proof of the pain and suffering of modern Korean history. Families of abductees who have lived in frustration for more than half a century are desperately hoping to at least know the fate of their beloved family members. Gang Jin-won has more.

A one-year-old baby daughter is now in her 60's. As the pictures fade away, the longing for his father grows greater.


[Interview: Lee Seong-ui, daughter of an abductee]

“It’s been 61 years since we were separated, but we still live in frustration, not even knowing the fate of my father.”

After the Korean War broke out, her father was detained in the Seodaemoon Prison, branded as a reactionary just because he was a lawyer. Miari Hill of Sadness, over which he must have crossed when he was dragged to the North, was a way of no return. Her mother was sick in bed and her family ran out of money. Her father’s absence was enormous.

“I would like to know how he lived and passed away, or even at least how he lived…”

The North Korean Army took approximately 100,000 South Korea civilians to the North during the Korean War. The abductees included a great number of intellectuals of South Korea, including those in legal professions and with public posts, and people in the financial sector.

However, this figure is just estimate. As of now, nothing has been clarified about the abduction. The Act on Investigating Abductions by North Korea during the Korean War and Restoring Honor to the Victims, which was introduced last year, laid a foundation for the fact-finding investigation. But there is still a long road ahead.

[Interview: Park Seon-yeong, Member of the National Assembly (Liberty Forward Party)]

“With the establishment of the Committee this year, the government has begun to receive reports. However, the government needs to inform the international community that the wartime abduction of civilians clearly goes against the Geneva Convention.”

North Korea still does not admit the fact that it abducted South Korean civilians during the Korean War. Families of the abductees are having difficulty finding the fate of the abductees and bringing back their remains. They are appealing to the Korean government to make a more active effort.

[Interview: Kim Hang-tae, wife of an abductee]

“'Don’t worry. I’ll be back. Your husband Kim Jae-bong.' This is what it said. 'Your husband Kim Jae-bong.' All I got was the small note."