Enforced or involuntary disappearance is an international phenomenon.
According to the United Nations Declaration on According to the United
Nations Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced or
Involuntary Disappearances.
“An enforced disappearance occurs when persons are arrested, detained or
abducted against their will or otherwise deprived of their liberty by
officials or different branches or levels of Government, or by organized
groups, or private individuals acting on behalf of, or with the support,
direct or indirect, consent or acquiescence of the Government, followed by
a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of their liberty, which places
such persons outside the protection of the law.”
In Asia, involuntary disappearances are widespread.
In Burma , the phenomenon of disappearances often takes place in the
context of forced labor whereby people are forcibly taken to undisclosed
locations by military forces. The monitoring of such cases is difficult to
the strict censorship and intimidation measures imposed by the SLORC (
State Law and Order Restoration council , which rules Burma - preventing
the full reporting of cases by victims relatives
.
In the wake of the June 4, 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre in Beijing,
China, the international media reported that hundreds or thousands were
killed. But in the years that have followed, the government has provided
no public account of those killed or missing.
In Indonesia, it is estimated that thousands of disappearances occurred
during the 32 years of Suharto's New Order regime, and in the ongoing
period of civil unrest that followed. This has been presently aggravated
by the on-going conflict in Aceh and other militarized areas of the
country.
In the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India , the on-going conflict between
India and Pakistan both claiming jurisdiction over the state resulted in
about 8,000 reported cases of disappearances. It is believed that the
police cremated the bodies, but the government has provided no information
to the families.
In the 2002 report of the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary
Disappearances, Nepal ranks first in the list of countries that submitted
cases of involuntary disappearances.
The phenomenon of enforced disappearance in Pakistan is to be viewed in
accordance with the political and cultural ethos of the country. Pakistan
was created in 1947 through the voluntary withdrawal of British colonial
rule. Its creation was not an outcome of a revolution, but from historical
convulsion. Army and civil bureaucracy blocked the path to democracy and
rule of law. Constitutional transformation was legalized by the judicial
branch of state. The initial derailment from the constitutional path made
Pakistan into a nearly failed state. As one consequence of such a
situation, involuntary disappearances occurred and still continue.
In the Philippines, 1,856 reported cases of disappearances are still
unresolved-not a single perpetrator has been punished an the families
remain unindemnified. After years of lobbying from the families of the
disappeared , the Philippine government has still to enact law
criminalizing enforced or involuntary disappearances.
Sri Lanka, with 60,000 reported cases, has the largest number of reported
disappearances in the continent. Despite the three visits of the United
Nations Working Group on enforced or Involuntary Disappearances to the
country, many of the latter's recommendation remain unimplemented.
In Thailand, 255 cases of disappearances were reported as an aftermath of
the bloody suppression of the May 1992 democratic uprising. The Thai
government is putting the burden of finding leads as to the whereabouts of
the disappeared on the shoulders of the victims' families who, despite
their resoluteness in searching for, at least, the remains of their loved
ones, have no information at all.
All these are exacerbated by the present war against terrorism-an
aftermath of the September 11, 2001 tragedy, for which the Asian region
bears the brunt of it. The consequent shift towards totalitarianism in a
number of Asian countries is a cause for alarm and a signal for an
increase in future cases of involuntary disappearances.
While the human rights movement in the Asian region has advanced, it is
threatened by the effects of the war against terrorism , one possible form
of which is involuntary disappearances. Thus, in the face of all this
atrocities and the imminent threat of future human rights violations, it
is imperative to strengthen the organizations of families of victims on
the national, regional and international levels.
The majority of the families of the disappeared in the
region com from the marginalized sectors of society , who rarely have
means to pursue their cases. Unlike their Latin American counterparts who
have made breakthroughs in the fight against impunity and have achieved
relatively concrete gains in achieving truth , justice and redress, the
families of the disappeared in Asia have not yet achieved significant
inroads in the fight against impunity. What makes their situation all the
more difficult is the absence of regional human rights mechanisms which
are necessary means especially when local remedies are exhausted.
In Asia, existing organizations for the disappeared are conducting serious
investigations and campaigns for justice in their respective countries.
Unified in a regional level, these organizations gradually bring about
concrete results in the fight for accountability and the end to impunity.
Considering the gravity of the situation of disappearances in Asia and
being aware of the richness of experiences obtained by national
organizations working on this issue, it is imperative that a distinct
Asia-wide federation of organizations of families of the disappeared be
established and developed further in order to promote the particularities
of the phenomenon of disappearances in the Asia region. The birth of the
Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) on June 4, 1998
is a concrete organizational response to the regional phenomenon of
involuntary disappearances. So far, AFAD has performed the task of
highlighting the issue of disappearances in Asia and providing pressure on
Asian governments to respond to demands of accountability. The resolution
of past cases and the prevention of future ones can eventually be
facilitated through the strengthening of this existing regional unity in
the fight against impunity. Its struggle should be linked to the struggle
of civil society and grassroots organizations to ensure maximum impact.
The experience of the Latin American Federation of Associations of
Relatives of the Disappeared Detainees (FEDEFAM) and the concrete
victories it has garnered in more than twenty years of its existence are
proof that regional cooperation indeed, effects a strong impact.
The situation of enforced disappearances in Asia is widespread but not
widely known due to the strict government control over related information
. The birth of AFAD has brought about a unified Asian voice on the issue.
Since its birth, AFAD, together with FEDEFAM and more recently with the
newly established African Network Against Disappearances Reseau Africain
Contre Les Disparitions Forcees (RADIF) has been lobbying for the
ratification of the United Nations Draft Convention for the Protection of
All Persons from Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. This regional
voice continue to speak strongly on the issue of disappearances in Asia ,
therefore, has gradually been heard nationally, regionally and
internationally. AFAD's presence during sessions of the United Nations
Commission on Human Rights and recently during the sessions of the Open-
Ended working Group for A Legally -Binding Normative Instrument for the
Protection of All persons from Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances is a
voice loud enough to be heard by the Asian governments who implicitly say
that the problem of involuntary disappearances belongs only to the Latin
America. Another value of AFAD's formation is that the federation has
facilitated an on-going process of formulation of Asian particularities on
relation to involuntary disappearances-both in terms of political
situation and organizational response.
Organizations within Asia are at different stages of development because
of varying internal and external factors and because of their unique
experiences. Thus, learning from the experiences and expertise of
organizations from other countries is necessary for mutual enrichment.
Strengthening cooperation ensures each and every member's sustainability
in this long-drawn struggle for justice for the disappeared. The strength
of the whole federation is the strength of each member and vice versa. It
is a known fact that we are in an era of globalization. Governments are
forming their own regional and inter-regional entities for cooperation.
Non-governmental organizations of common concerns, shall also unite and
organize in order to confront the increasing challenges of human rights
work.
The Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances is a reaffirmation
to the families of the disappeared in countries across Asia as well as
other continents that they are not alone in the struggle. By forming an
Asian group of organizations focused on disappearances, it is important to
note that many countries in the region have repressive regimes, preventing
the existence of organizations focused on the issue of disappearances. One
big challenge for the federation is to facilitate the formation of
organizations focused on disappearances in countries that have none.
One particularity of Asia is the fact that Asian countries, unlike those
of Latin American countries have different languages. While this language
and cultural diversity is a practical difficulty, this should pose as a
challenge for enriching further the solidarity.
I. Nature and Name of the Asian Federation Against Involuntary
Disappearances
The Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearance or AFAD is a human
rights federation of organizations concerned on the issue of
disappearances in Asia. As a federation, it has its own mandate,
Constitution, By-laws, Orientation and General Plan of Action.
AFAD exists on the basis of the members' common concern on the issue of
disappearances. Moreover , the federation believes that its work has to be
contextualized to the over-all socio-economic and political situations of
the region and the countries concerned.
While forging mutual solidarity , AFAD recognizes the independence,
particularity and internal dynamics of each member-organization. It
coordinates closely with international non-government organizations and
maximizes existing mechanisms of governments for the advantage of its
work.
AFAD serves as a source of information to local, regional and
international bodies for purposes of promotion and support.
II. Guiding Principles of the AFAD
AFAD is guided by the principles of mutual support among member
organizations, transparency within the federation and with other regional
formations and sustainability of efforts. Furthermore, the federation
adheres to the following internationally agreed human rights instruments:
The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
