Question of Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances

A/RES/49/193View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, published in 1995.

What other versions does this mandate have?

17 versions · 1983–2005

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/59/200

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2005	A/RES/59/200	Question of enforced or involuntary disappearances	1,408	79%Compare
2003	A/RES/57/215	Question of enforced or involuntary disappearances	1,514	68%Compare
2001	A/RES/55/103	Question of enforced or involuntary disappearances	1,243	82%Compare
1999	A/RES/53/150	Question of enforced or involuntary disappearances	1,135	95%Compare
1997	A/RES/51/94	Question of enforced or involuntary disappearances	1,116	64%Compare

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

2 reports · 2004–2006

Year	Symbol	Title		Mandate resolution
2006	A/61/289	Question on enforced or involuntary disappearances report of the Secretary-General		A/RES/59/200
2004	A/59/341	Question on enforced or involuntary disappearances report of the Secretary-General		A/RES/57/215

What subjects does this mandate have?

16 subjects

Children Criminal Investigation Criminal Law Declarations Disappearance of Persons Fact-Finding Missions Family Human Rights Violations Impunity Information Dissemination International Instruments Languages Prosecution Reporting Procedures State of Emergency Written Communications

What’s in this document?

24 operative paragraphs

Reaffirms that any act of enforced disappearance is an offence to human dignity and a grave and flagrant violation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,⁴ and reaffirmed and developed in other international instruments in this field, as well as a violation of the rules of international law;

⁴Resolution 217 A (III).

Recalls that all acts of enforced disappearance are offences punishable by appropriate penalties which take into account their extreme seriousness under criminal law;

Reiterates its invitation to all Governments to take appropriate legislative or other steps to prevent and suppress the practice of enforced disappearances, in keeping with the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, and to take action at the national and regional levels and in cooperation with the United Nations to that end;

Calls upon Governments to take steps to ensure that, when a state of emergency is introduced, the protection of human rights is ensured, particularly as regards the prevention of enforced disappearances;

Reminds Governments of the need to ensure that their competent authorities conduct prompt and impartial inquiries in all circumstances, whenever there is reason to believe that an enforced disappearance has occurred in territory under their jurisdiction;

Recalls that, if allegations are confirmed, perpetrators should be prosecuted;

Once again urges the Governments concerned to take steps to protect the families of disappeared persons against any intimidation or ill-treatment to which they might be subjected;

Encourages States, as some have already done, to provide concrete information on measures taken to give effect to the Declaration, as well as obstacles encountered;

Requests all States to consider the possibility of disseminating the text of the Declaration in their respective national languages and to facilitate its dissemination in the national and local languages;

Notes the action taken by non-governmental organizations to encourage implementation of the Declaration, and invites them to continue to facilitate its dissemination and to contribute to the work of the Subcommission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities;

Expresses its appreciation to the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances for its humanitarian work;

Requests the Working Group, in the continued exercise of its mandate, to take into account the provisions of the Declaration and to modify its working methods if necessary;

Invites the Working Group to identify obstacles to the realization of the provisions of the Declaration and to recommend ways of overcoming those obstacles, taking into account the discussions of the Subcommission;

Furthermore encourages the Working Group to continue to consider the question of impunity, in close collaboration with the rapporteur appointed by the Subcommission and with due regard for the relevant provisions of the Declaration;

Requests the Working Group to pay the utmost attention to cases of children subjected to enforced disappearance and children of disappeared persons and to cooperate closely with the Governments concerned to search for and identify those children;

Appeals to the Governments concerned, particularly those which have not yet replied to the communications transmitted by the Working Group, to cooperate fully with it and, in particular, to reply promptly to its requests for information so that, while respecting its working methods based on discretion, it may perform its strictly humanitarian role;

Encourages the Governments concerned to give serious consideration to inviting the Working Group to visit their countries so as to enable the Working Group to fulfil its mandate even more effectively;

Expresses its profound thanks to the many Governments that have cooperated with the Working Group and replied to its requests for information, and to the Governments that have invited the Working Group to visit their countries, asks them to give all necessary attention to the Working Group's recommendations and invites them to inform the Working Group of any action they take on those recommendations;

Calls upon the Commission on Human Rights to continue to study this question as a matter of priority and to take any step it may deem necessary to the pursuit of the task of the Working Group and to the follow-up of its recommendations when it considers the report to be submitted by the Working Group to the Commission at its fifty-first session;⁵

⁵E/CN.4/1995/36.

Invites the Commission on Human Rights at its fifty-first session to consider extending for three years the term of the mandate of the Working Group, as defined in Commission resolution 20 (XXXVI) of 29 February 1980,⁶ while maintaining the principle of annual reporting, and requests the Working Group to continue to fulfil its mandate in a rigorous and constructive fashion;

⁶See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 1980, Supplement No. 3 and corrigendum (E/1980/13 and Corr.1), chap. XXVI, sect. A.

Renews its request to the Secretary-General to continue to provide the Working Group with all the facilities it requires to perform its functions, especially in carrying out missions and following them up;

Requests the Secretary-General to keep it informed of the steps he takes to secure the widespread dissemination and promotion of the Declaration ;

Also requests the Secretary-General to submit to it at its fifty-first session a report on the steps taken to implement the present resolution;

Decides to consider the question of enforced disappearances, and in particular the implementation of the Declaration, at its fifty-first session under the sub-item entitled "Human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms".

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What other versions does this mandate have?

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

Table of contents