The mother of a Japanese girl who was abducted by North Korea at the age of 13 has made a fresh call for the early return of abduction victims.

Yokota Megumi was abducted by North Korean agents on her way home from high school in the city of Niigata, along the coast of the Sea of ​​Japan. The abduction took place on November 15, 1977, and last month she turned 60.

Her mother, Yokota Sakie, attended a supporter group meeting held in Tokyo on Thursday.

Yokota said she never expected to be separated from her daughter for 47 years.

Yokota recalled that she would cry in despair after Megumi’s sudden disappearance.

She said the abduction issue is very important to both Japan and the world, and that she now believes North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is trying to stand alone.

Yokota also said he always hoped a Japanese prime minister would hold serious talks with the North Korean leader.

He then read a message to his daughter, saying that he would wait until Megumi returned, clinging to the belief that she was still alive.

Yokota urged her daughter to believe that the day will come when she will set foot on Japanese soil with other kidnap victims. She asked Megumi to try to be fit and not get sick.

There are 12 more people identified by the Japanese government as abducted by North Korea, whose whereabouts remain unknown.

Only two parents of the abductees are still alive, namely Yokota, 88, and Arimoto Akihiro, 96, whose daughter Keiko was also abducted in North Korea.

Yokota said after the meeting that 47 years is an incredibly long time and he believes it is important to pray from the heart for their return.