A group of students, faculty, and staff of the School of Political Science and Economics interacted with North Korea Abduction Victims—Ms. Hitomi Soga and others.
Between September 25 and 27, 2017, 17 students, faculty members, and staff officials from the School of Political Science and Economics visited Sado Island on a study trip and interacted with North Korea abduction victims (such as Ms. Hitomi Soga), the deputy mayor of Sado City, and local high school students.
U.S. President Donald Trump talked about the abduction issue in his United Nations speech on September 19, just before this seminar trip, as well as about the nuclear issue and missile problems. North Korea gathered worldwide attention. It was a very valuable opportunity to have direct contact with Ms. Soga, an abduction victim who was kidnapped (together with her mother) by North Korea 40 years ago and could not return to Japan for a quarter of a century. Students eagerly asked about the details of her experience in North Korea and the tensions among the countries surrounding North Korea. After that, Ms. Soga met President Trump, who came to Japan last November.
In addition to interaction with Ms. Soga, the group visited Sado Kanayama, Sado City Hall, and a local junior high school and high school. At the city hall, the deputy mayor and city officials talked about various problems and initiatives in Sado’s economy and industry. A lot of proposals were made by students to revitalize the regional economy.
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In the local junior high school and high school visits, exhibits of local art made by students of the city were shown, discussions in English were held, and presentations in English were given to local students by the seminar group students. This deepened the participants’ understanding of different cultures and lifestyles.
This seminar trip was part of the special seminar course called the Asian Future Leaders Program (AFLP) seminar. In the seminar, double-degree students selected from top schools in Asia, such as Beijing University, National Taiwan University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and Hong Kong Institute of Technology, as well as selected students from the School of Political Science and Economics, learn together about various problems confronted by East Asian countries. This trip was a unique opportunity to deepen their understanding of international political, economic, historical, and cultural issues in Asian countries from various angles through interaction with local people.
