The year 2022 marks the thirtieth anniversary of the adoption – through General Assembly resolution 47/133 – of the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. The Declaration is a body of principles for all States that is designed to prohibit enforced disappearances, to prevent their commission and to help victims of such acts and their families to unveil the truth, obtain justice and seek fair, prompt and adequate reparation.

Since its adoption, the Declaration significantly contributed to the progress of international law on enforced disappearance, culminated in the adoption and opening for signature in 2007 of the International Convention on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, as well as to the development of international practice and domestic legislation and jurisprudence.

The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances launched a special initiative to mark the adoption of the Declaration, aiming at taking stock of the progress of international law on the subject, as well as identifying the obstacles encountered in the implementation of the Declaration and the ways in which the Working Group could support States in overcoming them, including through technical assistance and cooperation.

On 3 November 2021, the Working Group circulated a call to collect inputs from different stakeholders on the contribution of the Declaration to the progress of international and domestic law and jurisprudence, the obstacles encountered in its implementation, the relevant lessons learned and good practices.

As at August 2022, 47 written submissions had been received, respectively from States (18) intergovernmental organizations (1); United Nations and specialized agencies (1); civil society organizations, including associations of relatives of disappeared persons (21); and experts, scholars or academic institutions (6).2 The Working Group wishes to express its gratitude for all the responses, which provided a wealth of information and insights.