Some relatives of abductees said Wednesday they were against the government sending Japanese officials to Pyongyang as the North has requested, because they may return empty-handed.

The government wants North Korea to release a promised initial report into the fate of Japanese nationals kidnapped in the 1970s and 1980s, but a lobby group representing their families said it¡¯s unlikely a visit to Pyongyang would make the abductees¡¯ return any more likely.

¡°Most of the families agreed that it would be ineffective for (the officials) to visit North Korea just to meet members of the special investigation committee,¡± said Shigeo Iizuka, head of the Association of the Families of Victims Kidnapped by North Korea.