War-displaced woman looking for kin in Japan

A woman born in China shortly after the war and left there as an infant by her Japanese family has come to Japan in search of relatives.

The woman, identified as Qu Meiqin, presumed to be 64, plans to meet Thursday with a man in Ibaraki Prefecture who may be her older brother.

She is the only person to be brought to Japan by the welfare ministry this fiscal year. The ministry began organizing trips to Japan in 1981 for war-displaced Chinese of Japanese descent.

"I have finally come to my home country and I really appreciate my foster parents who raised me to be a doctor, as well as the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, which helped me to come to Japan," Qu said at Narita airport after arriving Tuesday.

During a news conference at the ministry later in the day, Qu said, "My wish is to (resettle in) Japan for good, together with my foster mother and family."

In spring 1946, Qu, who was about 4 months old, was handed over to a Chinese woman in what is now Changchun, Jilin Province. The woman, an acquaintance of Qu's mother, adopted her.

The welfare ministry publicized information about Qu's background and later arranged a meeting with the Ibaraki man, who said Qu was about the same age as his younger sister, from whom he was separated in China when she was about 4 months old.

During her stay, Qu is scheduled to visit a facility in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, which helps war-displaced people from China adjust to life in Japan. She will also make a two-day trip to Tateshina, Nagano Prefecture, before leaving on Nov. 28.

Up to now, 2,816 people, including Qu, have been recognized as so-called war orphans, of whom 1,282 have been identified. The ministry has been cooperating with its Chinese counterpart in conducting a series of interviews to identify those who were left behind in China.

The welfare ministry says it has become difficult to confirm the identities of Japanese nationals stranded in China as war-displaced due to the aging of their relatives, as well as limited documentation and information, now that more than six decades have passed since the end of the war.