A U.N. special rapporteur on North Korea, Marzuki Darusman, will make a five-day visit to Japan from Monday to gather information on human rights abuses by Pyongyang, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said.
"I will use this mission to Japan to continue exploring possible measures to pursue accountability for gross human rights violations in (North Korea), including abductions," Darusman said in a press release from the U.N. office on Wednesday.
This will likely be Darusman's last visit to Japan as his mandate expires in July.
He was appointed special rapporteur in July 2010 by the U.N. Human Rights Council.
During his visit, Darusman will meet with government officials, support groups and families of abductees who were taken by North Korean agents in the 1970s and 1980s.
The information gathered by Darusman during his trip to Japan will be included in a report to be presented to the Human Rights Council in March.