UN expert panel to examine 400 cases of enforced disappearances

2011 Nov 3 - 15:55

The United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances is reviewing more than 400 cases of enforced disappearances from over 40 countries, the UN Commission on Human Rights announced on November 1. As part of its 95th session, taking place November 1 to 11 at the United Nations office in Geneva.

The group's five independent experts, hailing from South Africa, France, Argentina, Lebanon, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, are planning to meet with governmental delegations, civil society representatives, and relatives of disappeared persons in order to assess disappearance claims and formulate both individual and policy recommendations.

The Working Group is also set to finalize its annual report, which will be presented to the Human Rights Council at its 19th session in March, 2012.

The Working Group was established by the UN Commission on Human Rights in 1980 to assist families in determining the fate and whereabouts of disappeared relatives. It aims to establish a channel of communication between the families and governments concerned, to determine the whereabouts of disappeared persons and have their cases investigated.