SEOUL-- Rep. Tae Yong-ho, a North Korean defector-turned-lawmaker of the ruling People Power Party, said Monday he has proposed a bill on legislating a day for separated families to raise awareness of the humanitarian issue.

Under the proposal, Tae called for designating Sept. 20 as Separated Families Day to commemorate the first-ever family reunions between the two Koreas held on the day in 1985.

As of July, government data showed there were 44,014 surviving members of separated families, with more than 66 percent of them aged over 80.

"Separated families are not only a personal issue but an agony for the Korean people," Tae said. "Public awareness on the issue should be raised so that family reunions will swiftly resume."

Source: Yonhap News Agency