At least one of the 15 Japanese women from North Korea who ended the first homecoming visit in four decades was told by North Korean authorities last February that she had been selected as one of the group members, it was learned Friday.
Kazuko Tashiro of Kanagawa Prefecture, whose sister moved to North Korea 36 years ago, told The Japan Times that she talked to four of the 15 women during their stay in Japan. The woman, whose name was withheld at Tashiro's request, in February was given pricey clothes and urged by authorities to eat a lot, Tashiro said.
The advance notice came prior to the fact that North Korean officials approached Japan's Foreign Ministry in May about the possible realization of the visit by Japanese women married to North Koreans. Japan and North Korea officially agreed on wives' return on Sept.9.