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Quiz about The Japanese Abductions
Quiz about The Japanese Abductions

The Japanese Abductions Trivia Quiz


In the 1970s and 1980s, Japanese citizens were abducted from their homeland and while overseas. This quiz is about this international incident and the fates of those abducted.

A multiple-choice quiz by albinerhawk. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
albinerhawk
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
307,834
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
5 / 10
Plays
405
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
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Question 1 of 10
1. Which country eventually confessed to being behind the abduction of thirteen Japanese citizens? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Other than Japan, where else were some of the Japanese abducted from? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Of the 13, of whom it is admitted that were abducted, how many are said to be dead? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Which of the following has NOT been cited as a the cause of death for any of the abduction victims? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Which abduction victim is believed to be Lee Un-Hae? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Who, at the age of thirteen, became the youngest victim of the abductions? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Which Japanese Prime Minister was successful in negotiations to bring home the abducted citizens who were still alive and their children? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Which of the following is true about the visit the survivors of the abductions took to Japan on October 15, 2002? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. Hitomi Soga, one of the survivors, was not alone when she was abducted. Who also was placed alongside her on the abduction list? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Why were there doubts as to whether Hitomi Soga could be reunited with her husband? Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Which country eventually confessed to being behind the abduction of thirteen Japanese citizens?

Answer: North Korea

The Japanese government had always suspected that North Korea was behind the abductions, but Pyongyang denied involvement until September 17, 2002. It is believed that the citizens were abducted for their identities and to train North Korean agents. Despite the confession, Japan still doubts North Korea's account of what happened.

The Japanese government has identified seventeen people as having been abducted by North Korea, which does not equal the thirteen that North Korea has confessed to. Seventy to eighty missing persons have also been claimed to have been abducted according to their families, but they have not been recognized by either government to be in this group.
2. Other than Japan, where else were some of the Japanese abducted from?

Answer: Europe

Toru Ishioka and Kaoru Matsuki were apparently abducted at the same time while living in Europe. Keiko Arimoto was studying in the United Kingdom. The last known contact from her was a letter that came from Copenhagen. A letter, postmarked from Poland, from Ishioka to his family informed them that all three of them were in North Korea.
3. Of the 13, of whom it is admitted that were abducted, how many are said to be dead?

Answer: Eight

While the five that North Korea stated were alive have been confirmed as so, there is still debate about the fate of the eight. When North Korea returned two cremated remains, DNA testing showed that they were not the individuals that North Korea claimed. North Korea has given two different dates for one abducted citizen's death.
4. Which of the following has NOT been cited as a the cause of death for any of the abduction victims?

Answer: Gunshot

North Korea claims that Shuichi Ichikawa and Rumiko Masumoto were married in July 1979. Ichikawa reportedly died of a heart attack in September 1979, and Masumoto also had a heart attack in 1981. They were both in their twenties. Tadaaki Hara was reported to have married Yaeko Taguchi in 1984 and died of Hepatic Cirrhosis in 1986. Toru Ishioka and Keiko Arimoto have been reported to have died in a gas accident in November 1988. North Korea has given no evidence to support the claims of any of these causes of death.
5. Which abduction victim is believed to be Lee Un-Hae?

Answer: Yaeko Taguchi

A former North Korean agent recalled being taught how to behave like a Japanese person by a woman called Lee Un-Hae. When Taguchi was abducted, she left behind an infant who was only one, named Koichiro Iizuka. Fukie Chimura, who has since returned, remembered staying with Taguchi and how she begged to be set free wanting to reunite with her son. North Korea claims that Taguichi died in a car accident in 1986.
6. Who, at the age of thirteen, became the youngest victim of the abductions?

Answer: Megumi Yokota

Megumi Yokota was on her way home from school when she disappeared on November 15, 1977. She lived in Niigata city, a port town that faces the Korean peninsula. She reportedly married a Korean man and had a daughter. DNA tests confirm that the girl is Yokota's daughter. North Korea claims that she committed suicide, but some still doubt whether she died.

Some speculate her widower is a South Korean man who was also abducted. Her parents are outspoken advocates for families of the abduction victims.
7. Which Japanese Prime Minister was successful in negotiations to bring home the abducted citizens who were still alive and their children?

Answer: Junichiro Koizumi

Koizumi served three terms as the Japanese Prime Minster from 2001 to 2006. He was considered to be quite flamboyant for a Japanese politician, with a unique hair style and utilizing the media to get his message out into the population. He stirred up national controversy by sending troops to Iraq.

He continued to spark international condemnation by visiting a religious shrine that memorialized the Japanese war dead which included war criminals.
8. Which of the following is true about the visit the survivors of the abductions took to Japan on October 15, 2002?

Answer: They did not return to the country that abducted them.

The five survivors (Yasushi and Fukie Chimura, Kaoru and Yukiko Hasuike, and Hitomi Soga) returned to Japan on October 15, 2002. North Korea had the understanding that they would return only temporarily before coming back to North Korea. However on October 24, 2002, the Japanese government announced that they would remain in Japan. All of the survivors left children in North Korea, and Soga left her husband behind her. On May 22, 2004, after successful negotiations, the Chimura and Hasuike children came to Japan for the first time and were reunited with their parents.
9. Hitomi Soga, one of the survivors, was not alone when she was abducted. Who also was placed alongside her on the abduction list?

Answer: Her mother

Hitomi Soga and her mother, Miyoshi Soga, disappeared after going shopping on August 12, 1978. They lived on Sado Island which is in the Niigata prefecture in the Sea of Japan. According to North Korea, Miyoshi Soga never entered into North Korea. Hitomi was nineteen at the time, and Miyoshi was forty-six.
10. Why were there doubts as to whether Hitomi Soga could be reunited with her husband?

Answer: He was an American deserter.

Charles Jenkins was in the American military in the sixties guarding the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea. When he believed that he was going to be sent to Vietnam, he crossed the border and was forced to be involved in anti-American propaganda.

He has been quoted as saying that his marriage to Soga was the only bright spot in his life there. When he and his daughters came to Japan by way of Indonesia, he reported to an American base and pled guilty to charges of desertion and aiding the enemy.

He was sentenced to thirty days and a dishonorable discharge, but this was shortened for good behavior. He then settled with his family on Sado Island.
Source: Author albinerhawk

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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