Committee on Enforced Disappearances
Twenty-second session
Summary record ( p artial )* of the 382nd meeting
Held at the Palais Wilson, Geneva, on Monday, 28 March 2022, at 10 a.m.
Chair:Ms. Villa Quintana
Contents
Opening of the session
Adoption of the agenda
Tribute to victims of enforced disappearance
The meeting was called to order at 10.05 a.m.
Opening of the session
1.The Chair declared open the twenty-second session of the Committee on Enforced Disappearances.
2.Mr. Salazar Volkmann (Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)) said that there were numerous examples of the fruitful collaboration that was taking place between the Committee and OHCHR field offices around the world as they worked together towards their common goal of putting an end to enforced disappearance. Committee members had provided input for a training session on enforced disappearance held in Baghdad by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq in November 2021. Committee members had worked with OHCHR field staff on meetings and training sessions concerning the ratification of the Convention in Lebanon and Malaysia. The OHCHR field office in Mexico had provided valuable support during the Committee’s 2021 visit to that country, and OHCHR looked forward to working with the Committee regarding the implementation of the recommendations contained in the Committee’s report on that visit, which he understood would be adopted at the current session. Going forward, it would be important for the Committee and OHCHR field offices to continue to work together to foster the translation of international standards into national policies and practices in the field.
3.When the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights had met with the Chairs of the treaty bodies in November 2021 within the context of the treaty body strengthening process, the Chairs had outlined their respective proposals on the development of a predictable review calendar, the harmonization of working methods and the digital transition. The High Commissioner had encouraged the Chairs at that time to develop a unified proposal, as such a proposal would be more likely to gain the approval of States parties. The next report of the Secretary-General on the status of the human rights treaty body system, which was to be submitted to the General Assembly at its 77th session, offered an excellent opportunity for the treaty body system to present a comprehensive contribution for inclusion in that report. He wished to encourage the Committee to continue its consultations in an inclusive and open manner and to empower its Chair to present its views at the forthcoming meeting of the Chairs of the human rights treaty bodies.
4.The Chair said that, although it was working in the most economical and agile way possible, the Committee lacked the human resources and meeting time that it required to do its work. It was deeply concerning that more time could not be devoted to following up on the growing number of requests for urgent action, which currently stood at some 1,500. It was to be hoped that the treaty body review process would serve to strengthen the Committee’s capacity to protect human rights and ensure that its recommendations were implemented.
5.The Committee wished to further strengthen its cooperation with OHCHR field offices and other United Nations agencies. The information received as a result of that cooperation and the assistance of the field offices were of key importance in enabling the Committee to support States parties in complying with their obligations under the Convention.
6.The Committee welcomed the ratification of the Convention by Croatia, Denmark and Slovenia and the completion of the ratification process at the national level by Luxembourg. As it continued to work with all States parties to prevent enforced disappearances, the Committee had produced a new training guide to help States parties better understand the Convention and provide guidance regarding their submissions to the Committee. The training guide would also be useful for any other stakeholders, including victims, who wished to work with the Committee. The guide was currently available in English and would be translated into French and Spanish in due course.
7.Ms. Lochbihler said that, in order to strengthen cooperation with United Nations field offices and promote wider ratification of the Convention, materials such as the new training guide needed to be translated into more languages, including Arabic.
8.Mr. Ayat said that he agreed that the Committee urgently needed more financial support in order to handle its increased workload and welcomed the publication of the new training guide, which would be especially useful for new Committee members.
Adoption of the agenda ( CED/C/22/1 )
9. The provisional agenda was adopted.
Tribute to victims of enforced disappearance
10.The Chair said that she wished to express sorrow, on behalf of the Committee, for the victims of the enforced disappearances and gross human rights violations that were occurring during the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. She reiterated the call made by human rights experts on 22 February 2022 to the Russian Federation to observe and respect the principles of international law and to end the hostilities in Ukraine immediately.
11. At the invitation of the Chair, the members of the Committee observed a minute of silence to pay tribute to the victims of the conflict in Ukraine and all victims of enforced disappearance.
12.The Chair,introducing a short video documenting the Committee’s visit to Mexico, said that she wished to thank all the State institutions, victims, victims’ collectives, civil society organizations and individuals with whom the Committee members had met.
The discussion covered in the summary record ended at 10.40 a.m.