The UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances will hold its 130thsession from 8 to 12 May 2023 to examine 337 cases in 23 countries. Cases tantamount to disappearances perpetrated by non-State actors exercising Government-like functions or de facto control over a territory and population will also be discussed during the session.
The five independent experts will hold meetings with relatives of forcibly disappeared persons, State representatives, civil society groups and other stakeholders to exchange information on individual cases and structural issues and challenges related to enforced disappearances.
The experts will also examine allegations received regarding obstacles encountered in the implementation of the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (‘the Declaration’), such as regressive legislation and practices, or systemic failures in addressing cases of enforced disappearance, notably in the areas of truth, justice, memory and reparation.
The Working Group will also discuss internal matters and future activities and its thematic focus for 2024 on enforced disappearances in the context of elections.
The appointment of Ms. Ana Lorena Delgadillo Perez as a new member of the Working Group, effective 1 May 2023, represents a historic moment for the mandate as it is the first time in more than 40 years that the mechanism counts on five women as experts.
The decisions made by the Working Group during the 130thsession will be reflected in its next post-sessional report.
The sessions of the Working Group are held in private.
