Enforced disappearances: UN expert group to review in Brussels more than 800 cases from 47 countries

GENEVA / BRUSSELS (1 February 2018) – The United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances will hold its 114th session in Brussels from 5 to 9 February to examine more than 800 cases from 47 countries.

The Group - composed of five independent human rights experts - will also meet relatives of those who have disappeared, State authorities from different countries, civil society representatives and other stakeholders to exchange information on individual cases and on the situation of this heinous crime.

The Working Group will, in addition, discuss internal matters and future activities, including its planned country visits for 2018. The experts will also examine allegations received regarding obstacles encountered in the implementation of the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

On 5 February, an event on “enforced disappearance in the 21st century” will be held at the Egmont Palace in Brussels.

The Working Group’s meetings are held in private. A press conference will take place at the end of the session on Friday, 9 February, at 14:00, in the Orange Room of the Egmont Palace, Brussels. Access to the press conference is strictly reserved to journalists, who should register by Wednesday, 7 February, at the following address: wgeid@ohchr.org.

ENDS

The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances is comprised of five independent experts from all regions of the world. The Chair-Rapporteur is Mr. Bernard Duhaime (Canada) and the Vice-Chair is Mr. Tae-Ung Baik (Republic of Korea); other members are Ms. Houria Es-Slami (Morocco); Mr. Luciano Hazan (Argentina) and Mr. Henrikas Mickevicius (Lithuania).

The Working Group was established by the then UN Commission on Human Rights in 1980 to assist families in determining the fate and whereabouts of disappeared relatives. It 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. It also provides assistance in the implementation by States of the UN Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

The Working Groups are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms. Special Procedures mandate-holders are independent human rights experts appointed by the Human Rights Council to address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. They are not UN staff and are independent from any government or organization. They serve in their individual capacity and do not receive a salary for their work.

For more information and media requests, please contact Mr. Ugo Cedrangolo:  ucedrangolo@ohchr.org or wgeid@ohchr.org or Mr. Paul d’Auchamp: +32 (0) 22 740 172 or pdauchamp@ohchr.org

For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts:
Jeremy Laurence – Media Unit (+ 41 22 917 9826 / jlaurence@ohchr.org)

You can access this media advisory online

This year, 2018, is the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the UN on 10 December 1948. The Universal Declaration – translated into a world record 500 languages – is rooted in the principle that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” It remains relevant to everyone, every day. In honour of the 70thanniversary of this extraordinarily influential document, and to prevent its vital principles from being eroded, we are urging people everywhere to Stand Up for Human Rights: www.standup4humanrights.org.

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