AFAD 25 Years Video Teaser

This AFAD video teaser is an opening salvo of the yearlong campaign and fight Against Enforced Disappearances and for the Protection, not Persecution, of Human Rights Defenders, across Asia.

a continuing crime
a disappearing act

What's Happening

“Carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.” ― Shannon Alder

TODAY, November 2 in the Philippines, marks the All Souls’ Day where families come together to visit the graves of their loved ones. But for many families of the disappeared, who are clueless about the fates and whereabouts of their loved ones, a visit to the cemetery is no option. They refuse to recognize the disappeared as dead.

THE HAGUE, September 26, 2019 – On the fifth year of the disappearance of the 43 students of Ayotzinapa, Mexico, the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) calls on the Mexican government to ensure that the new rounds of investigations are properly conducted in accordance with international legal norms. As the whereabouts of the 43 students remain unknown, and in light of the courts ordering the release of 77 out of the 142 identified suspects, the Mexican government has a long road ahead in resolving one of its worst human rights tragedies in recent history.

30th August 2019

Manila: Today, on the occasion of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) brings attention to the global issue of enforced disappearances that violates the fundamental rights to life, liberty, and security of the disappeared individual and the family. 

Dhaka/Manila, 30 August 2019: The International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances is observed globally on 30 August every year and this gives us the opportunity to remember the numbers of people who were disappeared due to armed conflict, war, occupation, xenophobia, authoritarianism and political turmoil; and to show solidarity with the victim-families. While commemorating this day, Odhikar and AFAD remember the victims of enforced disappearance and respect the struggles of the families of the disappeared persons around the world.

The Federation

AFAD map