A/HRC/40/22 number of patrols in order to manage the growing number of refugees and migrants crossing through the buffer zone (ibid., para. 26). The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organization for Migration worked to facilitate and improve the reception and protection of refugees and migrants. Given the persistent division of Cyprus, there is the absence of an asylum system in the north of the island, and limited information is available on the presence of asylum seekers and possible cases of refoulement. 9. Through an intercommunal strategy, UNFICYP and the Secretary-General’s good offices mission worked to contribute to trust-building among Cypriots. They continued to facilitate the work of all 12 bicommunal technical committees, 1 and supported the revitalization of the Nicosia Master Plan. In addition, UNFICYP scoped and reached out to new actors in order to support civil society and facilitate their interactions across the island (ibid., paras. 30–34). 10. The Secretary-General acknowledged the encouraging work carried out in certain segments of society, including trade unions, some political parties, women’s groups and other organized civic groups, to keep promoting a solution based on the bizonal, bicommunal federation with political equality. He appealed to the leaders of the two communities to provide visible and direct support to civil society organizations in their efforts, and to further the implementation of confidence-building measures (ibid., para. 56). He urged greater efforts to create a climate conducive to achieving more economic and social parity between the two sides and to broaden and deepen economic, social, cultural, sporting and similar ties and contacts, noting that such contacts promoted trust between the communities and helped to address the concerns of Turkish Cypriots with regard to isolation (ibid., para. 59). III. Human rights concerns 11. The continued division of Cyprus affects human rights throughout the island, including the right to life and the question of missing persons, non-discrimination, freedom of movement, property rights, freedom of religion or belief and cultural rights, freedom of opinion and expression, and the right to education. In addition, it is important that a gender perspective be adopted in relation to the peace process. A. Right to life and the question of missing persons 12. According to article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.2 Furthermore, article 1 of the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance provides that any act of enforced disappearance is an offence to human dignity, placing the persons subjected thereto outside the protection of the law, and inflicting severe suffering on them and their families. Any act of enforced disappearance also violates or constitutes a grave threat to the right to life. 13. The potential presence of landmines can have a negative effect on a number of rights, including the right to life. In its resolutions 2398 (2018) and 2430 (2018), the Security Council noted the continued danger posed by mines in Cyprus, and noted with regret that the sides were withholding access to the remaining minefields in the buffer zone. The Security Council called on both sides to allow access to deminers and to facilitate the removal of the 1 2 Twelve bicommunal technical committees were established by the leaders of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities in the most recent rounds of the Cyprus negotiations, which cover a range of issues including cultural heritage, health, gender equality, education, and crime and criminal matters. At the time of preparation of the present report, six of the committees were facilitated by the Office of the Special Adviser on Cyprus and six were facilitated by UNFICYP. UNFICYP was supported in the process by UNDP which, through European Union funding, provided technical and strategic support to the Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage and the Technical Committee on Crossings. See also the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, art. 6 (1). 3