Protect, not Persecute Human Rights Defenders: AFAD Commemorates the International Day of the Disappeared

31 August 2022

Manila:  On the International Day of the Disappeared 2022, the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) calls for the protection, NOT PERSECUTION, of human rights defenders and advocates.

Years after the adoption of the United Nations Declaration on Enforced Disappearance and the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED), the practice of enforced disappearance chillingly persists. Enforced disappearance is defined as a crime against humanity and the worst type of human rights violation as it puts a person completely outside the protection of the law.

Joint Press Statement 30 August 2022 Kathmandu, Nepal

On the occasion of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances (30 August), we, the undersigned victims’ groups, national and international organizations urge the Government of Nepal, to take urgent steps to ensure the rights to truth, justice and reparations of the families of the enforced disappeared.

DESAPARECIDOS ARE MARTYRS AND HEROES

(Privilege Speech of Rep. Edcel C. Lagman on the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearance, 30 August 2022)

Mr. Speaker, esteemed colleagues:

Yesterday we commemorated National Heroes Day to celebrate the great lives of Filipinos who courageously fought for justice, freedom, and democracy.

Today, we give tribute to a special class of heroes. Many without official recognition, although about 30 of them are honored by the Bantayog ng mga Bayani Foundation.

BANGLADESH: Set up independent mechanism to investigate all cases of enforced disappearance

Manila/Paris/Dhaka, 29 August 2022: On the eve of International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, AFAD, FIDH, Maayer Daak, and Odhikar pay tribute to victims and survivors of the heinous crime of enforced disappearance and stand in solidarity with the families of the disappeared. The Bangladeshi government has consistently denied all cases of enforced disappearance, despite evidence and reports...