About 30 people have turned out for a march in Auckland to urge the Tongan government to recover victims from the sunken ferry Princess Ashika.
The vessel capsized on 5 August about 90km northwest of the Tongan capital Nuku'alofa. Two bodies have been recovered and 72 people remain unaccounted for. Fifty-four people survived.
The marchers held photographs of missing loved ones as they walked down Queen Street on Sunday morning.
A woman on the march, whose brother is missing, told Radio New Zealand she wants to give him a proper burial.
"All I want is just the Government to do something to get them back. I feel sorry for them staying out there. I just want them to come back."
Pro-democracy campaigner Alani Taione, who organised the march, says Tongan officials would not hesitate to recover bodies if nobles were among those believed to have drowned.
He is asking New Zealanders to put themselves in the shoes of those who've lost someone and help in anyway they can.
The Tongan government has to decide whether to mount a recovery operation. The country's police commander has said such an operation, using private companies, could take months and cost millions of dollars, with no guarantee of complete success.
A memorial service was to be held near the Maritime Museum and flowers placed in the water after the march.
