Wednesday, January 22, 2003
JAPAN SPEAKS OUT ON NORTH KOREAN REFUGEE PROBLEM
Japanese leaders said Wednesday they hoped humanitarian measures will be taken to deal with the growing number of North Korean refugees in China and blamed the problem on Pyongyang.
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi told reporters at the Diet building, "I hope for humanitarian measures" to deal with the refugees, who reportedly include Japanese nationals, without elaborating.
Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe told a press conference as a government spokesman North Korea only has itself to blame for many people trying to leave their homeland.
"It is a grave decision for people to abandon their country," Abe said, adding that the North Korean government is entirely responsible for the fact that so many people are fleeing the country.
