A/HRC/36/39
from Enforced Disappearance, no State shall practise, permit or tolerate enforced
disappearances.
Mexico
91.
The Working Group welcomes the recent approval by the Senate of a general law on
enforced disappearances. It urges the Government to redouble its efforts to finalize its
approval as soon as possible, while noting at the same time that the bill has some gaps,
including in relation to the proposed system of search.
Myanmar
92.
The Working Group is concerned about the consistent and reliable reports of grave
and systematic human rights violations in Rakhine State, including enforced
disappearances. It emphasizes that, as provided in article 2 of the Declaration on the
Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance, no State shall practise, permit or
tolerate enforced disappearances and that, according to article 7 of the Declaration, no
circumstances whatsoever may be invoked to justify enforced disappearances.
93.
In that respect, the Working Group notes with concern the general allegation
transmitted on 9 June 2017, related to allegations of enforced disappearances following
security operations in northern Rakhine State (see A/HRC/WGEID/112/1, paras. 72-73, and
annex II) and requests that a reply be provided soon.
Nepal
94.
The Working Group was pleased to learn about the renewal, on 8 February 2017, of
the mandate of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Commission of
Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons. It regrets, however, that the extension is
for just one additional year. The Working Group calls upon the Government of Nepal to
extend those mandates further, in order to guarantee the effective planning and functioning
of the Commissions and to ensure significant progress on crucial aspects of their mandates,
such as truth-telling initiatives, the study of the nature and patterns of the serious human
rights violations, including enforced disappearances, the identification of perpetrators and
the recommendations on reparations to victims and on institutional reform.
95.
The Working Group is also aware that in 2015 the Commission of Investigation on
Enforced Disappeared Persons drafted a bill criminalizing enforced disappearances. That
piece of legislation has not, however, been tabled in Parliament yet. The Working Group
urges the Government of Nepal to accelerate the process of drafting the bill criminalizing
enforced disappearances, in consultation with relevant stakeholders, including victims and
civil society organizations, and to adopt such legislation promptly. It recalls that, according
to article 4 (1) of the Declaration on the Protection of all Persons from Enforced
Disappearance, all acts of enforced disappearance should be offences under criminal law
punishable by appropriate penalties which shall take into account their extreme seriousness
and that article 18 (1) provides that persons who have or are alleged to have committed
enforced disappearances should not benefit from any special amnesty law or similar
measures that might have the effect of exempting them from any criminal proceedings or
sanction.
96.
On 22 November 2016, the Working Group reiterated its request to visit the country,
initially made in 2006. No response has been received yet from the Government; the
Working Group hopes that a positive reply will be received soon.
Pakistan
97.
The Working Group is concerned about the fact that, during the reporting period, it
has transmitted to the Government 119 new cases under its urgent action procedure (see
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