A memorial was held Saturday for Shigeru Yokota, a prominent figure due to his tireless campaigning for the return of his daughter, Megumi, and her compatriots who were abducted by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga attended the central Tokyo ceremony and pledged to work toward a resolution of the issue, describing Yokota as someone "whose words moved people's hearts."
Yokota, 87 at the time of his death from old age in June, was tragically drawn into the issue when Megumi was abducted in 1977 at age 13.