[North Korean Enforced Disappearances] Memorial Event for the Restoration of the ‘Seoul Path of Remembrance for Abductees’
The Citizens' Coalition for North Korean Human Rights continues to speak out for the resolution and realization of justice for the victims of the numerous enforced disappearances perpetrated by North Korea.
The Citizens' Coalition for North Korean Human Rights, in cooperation with the Association of Families of Abductees during the Korean War, the Ministry of Unification, and the ‘Human Rights Hub’ at Yonsei University Graduate School of International Studies, the Ministry of Unification, and Yonsei University Graduate School of International Studies' ‘Human Rights Hub’. These events commemorated ‘International Week of the Disappeared’ and aimed to restore public memory of the over 100,000 civilians abducted by North Korean forces during the Korean War. These individuals were forcibly transported to North Korea after the recapture of Seoul on September 28, 1950, and their whereabouts remain unknown to this day.
This event focused on the restoration of the ‘Seoul Path of Remembrance for the Abducted,’ an approximately 8km walking course symbolically retracing the route taken by those abducted during the war. Each event drew about 40 participants, with a total of over 80 attendees.
Participants responded particularly positively to the storytelling format, which involved walking through historical sites, listening to explanations about the events, and sharing personal accounts conveyed by the victims' families. This approach served as an opportunity to convey the suffering and memories of the abductees more vividly.