Keiko Arimoto was kidnapped by North Korean agents in Europe in 1983. The 23-year-old Japanese woman was on the road after completing a study programme in London,
Her family has not seen her since, but they still remember her and feel her deeply absent.
On Sunday, his father and sisters arranged a birthday reunion with food and cake at their home in Kobe: Keiko was 60.
The family placed a photo of Keiko, very young, taken shortly before his abduction, reveals Mainichi Shimbun.
His 91-year-old father and sisters Masako and Naoko attended. The 94-year-old mother is in the hospital because of a hip problem.
"I want all this resolved soon, " said the father. "I want to tell Keiko to wait a little longer," he added.
One of the sisters, Naoko, told NHK that she is frustrated that Keiko has spent more than half her life in North Korea and hopes she will return to Japan as soon as possible.
North Korea claims Keiko died in 1988 from a gas leak at his home in Pyongyang. However, it has not provided any evidence of this. (International Press)
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