Relatives of Japanese and South Koreans abducted by Pyongyang told a Diet special committee Monday that their two governments must cooperate to get back their kin from North Korea as quickly as possible.

The first joint call at the Diet on the issue was triggered by Japan's announcement last month that DNA analysis indicates South Korean abductee Kim Young Nam is probably the father of Megumi Yokota's daughter, Kim Hye Gyong. Yokota was kidnapped by North Korean agents in 1977.

The DNA test results prompted Kim Young Nam's mother, Choi Gye Wol, and his sister, Kim Young Ja, along with representatives of South Korean groups working on the abductee issue to come to Japan to meet Yokota's parents and testify before the Diet.