HRCSL submits parallel report to United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearance

Reveals over 27,000 cases of missing persons considered by past commissions of inquiry

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THE Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) submitted its Parallel Report to the United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearance ahead of the Committee’s 29th session to be held from 22 September to 3 October.

At this session, the Committee is scheduled to review Sri Lanka’s fulfilment of obligations under the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (‘Convention’). The HRCSL’s 25-page report contained several key observations and recommendations on Sri Lanka’s implementation of the Convention.

The HRCSL recalled that enforced disappearance of a person amounts to a gross violation of human rights. The phenomenon has taken place in all parts of Sri Lanka and has impacted all communities, particularly in the context of insurrections in the South and the armed conflict in the North and East. The HRCSL also recognised the important efforts of families, activists, and civil society representatives in continuously calling for truth and accountability for enforced disappearance over many years. It specifically recognised that, despite economic challenges and care responsibilities, and having to deal with threats and intimidation, women have led efforts to organise to raise awareness and to advocate for truth and accountability with respect to enforced disappearance in Sri Lanka.