STATEMENT BY UN WORKING GROUP ON ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES ON THE OCCASION OF THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF THE DISAPPEARED
29 August 2008
Geneva: - -The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances commemorates the 25th anniversary of the International Day of the Disappeared tomorrow, as associations of relatives of the disappeared come together to hold acts of remembrance and to call for action to find their loved ones.
The Working Group reiterates its solidarity with all the victims of enforced disappearance and acknowledges the efforts of non-governmental organizations, human rights defenders and all others who work for disappeared persons.
Enforced disappearance is a terrible practice that affects men, women and children from all parts of the globe. The victims include human rights defenders, religious leaders, and people belonging to different ethnic and indigenous groups.
The Working Group takes this opportunity to express its concern over the growing number of cases of enforced disappearances occurring throughout the world, particularly in Chad, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Sudan and Thailand. There are also reports of disappearances which took place in the past and are still being received from Algeria and Nepal.
Nevertheless, the Working Group remains concerned about the phenomenon of underreporting, as it considers that cases of disappearances are happening in certain parts of the world but are not being reported.
The Working Group acknowledges that the cooperation of Governments is indispensable to discovering the fate or whereabouts of disappeared persons throughout the world. As such, it calls upon all Governments to take steps to address all disappearances, regardless of when these began.
The Working Group once again calls upon all Governments to ratify the International Convention for the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance. Its entry into force will help strengthen Government’s capacities to prevent and eradicate disappearances and will help the victims obtain their rights to justice and truth.
The Working Group was established by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 1980 to assist families in determining the fate or whereabouts of disappeared relatives. The Working Group endeavours to establish a channel of communication between the families and the Governments concerned, to ensure that individual cases are investigated, with the objective of clarifying the whereabouts of persons who, having disappeared, are placed outside the protection of the law. In view of the Working Group's humanitarian mandate, clarification occurs when the fate or whereabouts of the disappeared person is clearly established. The Working Group continues to address cases of disappearances until they are resolved.
The Working Group is comprised of five independent experts from all regions of the world. The Chairman-Rapporteur is Mr. Santiago Corcuera (Mexico), and the other Expert-Members are Mr. Darko Gottlicher (Croatia), Mr. Saied Rajaie Khorasani (Islamic Republic of Iran), Mr. Jeremy J. Sarkin (South Africa) and Mr. Stephen J. Toope (Canada).
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