A former Japanese abductee who returned from North Korea 20 years ago has called on Japan's government to take action to immediately bring back other people who were abducted.

Chimura Yasushi made the urgent appeal at a rally in the city of Fukui, central Japan, on Sunday.

Relatives of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea have called on the government to step up efforts to get all the victims back as soon as possible.

They made the appeal on Saturday at a government-sponsored symposium in Tokyo that coincided with a week-long campaign to raise awareness about human rights abuses in North Korea.

Japanese Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide has vowed full support for efforts to resolve the issue of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea.

Suga was speaking at a memorial service in Tokyo on Saturday for Yokota Shigeru, the father of Yokota Megumi who was abducted by North Korea in the 1970s. Shigeru died in June.

Members of the family of a Japanese woman abducted by North Korea have met a top official at the US Embassy in Tokyo and asked for cooperation toward a return of Japanese nationals abducted by the North.

Yokota Megumi was abducted in 1977 on her way home from junior high school in Niigata City, on the Sea of Japan coast.