ID :
211210
Wed, 10/05/2011 - 06:58
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/211210
The shortlink copeid
Defector Claims to Be Grandson of Ex-N. Korea Assembly Head
(Jiji Press) - One of the nine North Korean defectors who left Japan for South Korea Tuesday claims to be a grandson of Paek Nam Un, former president of North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly, Japanese government sources told Jiji Press.
The male defector, who is in his 40s and claims to be the leader of the nine people, said his family's fortunes took a turn for the worse after Paek was ousted around 1974, according to the sources. The man also said he earned his living by fishing before escaping from North Korea.
Officials of the South Korean Foreign Ministry said Seoul will closely examine statements made by the defectors to confirm whether they are accurate.
Paek was born in 1895 and graduated from the predecessor of Japan's Hitotsubashi University. He was in office as president of the North Korean assembly between 1967 and 1972 after serving as the country's first education minister.
He also served as a member of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea. He died in 1979.
The male defector also said that his late father, as a member of an intelligence division, was engaged in abductions of South Koreans, according to the Japanese government sources.
But the man said his father had never spoken of abductions of Japanese, the sources added.
The man belonged to Unit 867 of the North Korean military before defecting from the reclusive country. But he engaged in fishing instead of military duties, he said.
The nine defectors left a North Korean port in a small boat on Sept. 8. They initially hoped to reach South Korea in four days, but decided to head for Japan after their compass broke down.
The nine were taken into protective custody by Japanese authorities on Sept. 13 after being spotted off Wajima in the central Japan prefecture of Ishikawa, which faces the Sea of Japan.
They were sent to South Korea on Tuesday.
The man said that he obtained information about the situation in South Korea from the radio while he was in North Korea.
The male defector, who is in his 40s and claims to be the leader of the nine people, said his family's fortunes took a turn for the worse after Paek was ousted around 1974, according to the sources. The man also said he earned his living by fishing before escaping from North Korea.
Officials of the South Korean Foreign Ministry said Seoul will closely examine statements made by the defectors to confirm whether they are accurate.
Paek was born in 1895 and graduated from the predecessor of Japan's Hitotsubashi University. He was in office as president of the North Korean assembly between 1967 and 1972 after serving as the country's first education minister.
He also served as a member of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea. He died in 1979.
The male defector also said that his late father, as a member of an intelligence division, was engaged in abductions of South Koreans, according to the Japanese government sources.
But the man said his father had never spoken of abductions of Japanese, the sources added.
The man belonged to Unit 867 of the North Korean military before defecting from the reclusive country. But he engaged in fishing instead of military duties, he said.
The nine defectors left a North Korean port in a small boat on Sept. 8. They initially hoped to reach South Korea in four days, but decided to head for Japan after their compass broke down.
The nine were taken into protective custody by Japanese authorities on Sept. 13 after being spotted off Wajima in the central Japan prefecture of Ishikawa, which faces the Sea of Japan.
They were sent to South Korea on Tuesday.
The man said that he obtained information about the situation in South Korea from the radio while he was in North Korea.
