WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, on the 58th Anniversary of the Korean War Armistice Day, Congressman Charles Rangel introduced a resolution calling on North Korea to return Korean War POW/MIA(prisoners of war/missing in action)s and abductees to their loved ones.

“As we pay tribute to the nearly two million Americans who answered the call to defend the freedom of Korea, we should not forget about those who never returned,” Rangel said. “There are still surviving POWs detained in North Korea who for more than sixty years have been unable to return home. I call on North Korea to work with us toward reuniting the thousands of American and Korean families with their missing loved ones.”

The U.S. Defense Prisoner of War and Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) lists more than 8,000 American POW/MIA servicemen who are unaccounted for from the Korean War. It is estimated that as many as 73,000 South Korean POWs were not repatriated. North Korea has consistently refused to discuss the POW issue and the exact number of South Korean POWs who were detained in North Korea after the war is unknown, as is the number of those still alive in North Korea.

In addition, approximately 100,000 South Korean civilians (political leaders, public employees, lawyers, journalists, scholars, farmers, etc) were forcibly abducted by the North Korean Army during the wartime have not been admitted, accounted for, nor repatriated by North Koreans. North Korea has never acknowledged civilian abductions.

“The pain of war is felt not only by those who serve but also by those left behind,” Rangel said. "This resolution seeks to provide some closure to the families and friends of the POW/MIAs who have waited too long to learn the whereabouts of their father, husband, or brother."

Among the objectives, Rangel's resolution encourages North Korea to repatriate any soldiers they have held captive since the Korean War, and calls upon the U.S. government to resume search and recovery operations in North Korea which was suspended in 2005.

Joint Field Activities (JFAs) conducted by the U.S government between 1996 and 2005 yielded over 220 sets of remains that are still being processed for identification at Joint Prisoners of War, Missing in Action Accounting Command (JPAC) in Hawaii.

"God has blessed me and brought me back home. I hope to bring some solace for the families of those who were left behind," added Rangel, who earned a Purple Heart and Bronze Star for his service in Korea.

In the resolution, Rangel acknowledged the numerous organizations that have been working to bring awareness to this issue, including the National Alliance of POW/MIA Families, POW/MIA Freedom Fighters, Coalition of Families of Korean & Cold War POW/MIAs, Rolling Thunders Inc., Korean War Abductees Family Union, and The International Korean War Memorial Foundation POW Affairs Committee.