3 Fishermen Abducted by N. Korea in 1973 Recognized after 53 Years

South Korea has officially acknowledged three fishing crew members abducted by North Korea in 1973, according to the unification ministry. The ministry updated its list of post-war abductees to include Jo Gi-won, Kim Yang-hun, and Kim Dong-ho, who were forcibly taken from their fishing boat, the Daeyeong, near the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong.

The ministry plans to provide 81 million won (US$60,290) in consolation payments to Jo's family members. The ministry is currently seeking to locate the families of the other abductees. The Daeyeong was initially not included in the boats whose sailors were abducted by North Korea until crew member Kim Byeong-do returned to South Korea in 2003, as per the association representing the families of post-war abductees.

Since the Armistice Agreement ended the Korean War in 1953, 3,838 South Koreans were abducted to the North without their consent. Of these, 3,319 have since returned to South Korea, while an estimated 519 are believed to remain in North Korean custody. The abductees consist of passengers and crew from a hijacked Korean Air plane in 1969, as well as fishermen who were abducted while fishing near the inter-Korean maritime boundary.