A/HRC/7/2
page 97
Urgent appeals
14. Cases that have occurred within the three months preceding receipt of the report by the
Working Group are transmitted directly to the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the country
concerned by the most direct and rapid means. Their transmission can be authorized by the
Chairman on the basis of a specific delegation of power given to him by the Working Group.
Cases which occurred prior to the three-month limit, but not more than one year before the date
of their receipt by the Secretariat, provided that they had some connection with a case which
occurred within the three-month period, can be transmitted between sessions by letter, upon
authorization by the Chairman. The Working Group provides the source with a copy of the
summary of each urgent action, thus helping it to enter into communication with the authorities
on the case concerned.
Pregnancy
15. In the case of the disappearance of a pregnant woman, the child presumed to have been
born during the mother’s captivity should be mentioned in the description of the case of the
mother. The child would be treated as a separate case when witnesses reported that the mother
had actually given birth to a child during detention.
Situations of vulnerability
16. With respect to reported cases of disappearances, the Working Group highlights the
condition of people in situations of vulnerability, including women, children, the elderly, persons
with disabilities and other vulnerable groups.
Cases concerning two or more countries
17. Reports on a disappearance indicating that officials from one country are directly
responsible for or involved in a disappearance in another country, or cases where officials from
more than one country were directly responsible for or involved in the disappearance would be
communicated to all Governments concerned. However, the case would only be counted in the
statistics of the country in which the person was reportedly arrested, detained, abducted or last
seen. The same principles are applied with respect to the transmission of general allegations and
prompt interventions.
Government replies
18. All replies received from Governments concerning reports of disappearances are examined
by the Working Group and summarized in the Working Group’s annual report to the Human
Rights Council. Any information given on specific cases is forwarded to the sources of those
reports, who are invited to make observations thereon or to provide additional details on the
cases.
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