A/HRC/42/34 7. Gender-based and domestic violence 76. According to UN-Women, violence against women and domestic violence remained difficult to discuss in Abkhazia due to the denial of their existence and because they were treated as personal issues rather than as crimes and human rights violations. UN-Women informed OHCHR about its ongoing work in Abkhazia, focusing on prevention and response to violence against women and domestic violence. 8. Role of civil society 77. Information available to OHCHR indicates the continuing existence of a generally vocal civil society in Abkhazia, which is operating in a difficult environment. OHCHR received reports on rules introduced on 1 June 2018 that prohibit the representatives of the authorities in control in Abkhazia from participating in any international travel organized by non-governmental organizations. 78. In South Ossetia, the environment was reported to be very restrictive for civil society. The creation of a voluntary association is allegedly subject to strict scrutiny and control, which results in people opting to work individually, and those participating in meetings involving international organizations are allegedly pressured. According to several submissions, intimidation continued against Tamara Mearakishvili, an ethnic Georgian and civil society activist in Akhalgori, including through “criminal proceedings”.38 9. Truth and accountability Truth and accountability processes 79. During the reporting period, the International Criminal Court continued to investigate alleged crimes committed in the context of an international armed conflict between 1 July and 10 October 2008, in and around South Ossetia. 39 80. By the time of finalization of the present report, the decision of the European Court of Human Rights remained pending regarding application No. 38263/08 submitted by the Government of Georgia concerning the armed conflict in August 2008 and its aftermath. Procedures were also ongoing regarding a series of individual applications related to the conflict.40 Missing persons 81. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) continued work and reported on progress under its coordination mechanisms established to clarify the fate of persons missing in relation to the armed conflicts of the 1990s and 2008 and their aftermaths. According to ICRC, as of March 2019, more than 2,300 persons remained unaccounted for, including 2,200 in connection with the armed conflict in Abkhazia in the 1990s. 41 38 39 40 41 14 The case of Ms. Mearakishvili was mentioned in the 2018 report of the High Commissioner (A/HRC/39/44, para. 85). Several submissions received by OHCHR for the present report indicated that, by the end of May 2019, two “criminal proceedings” against Ms. Mearakishvili were ongoing, with hearings having been continuously postponed in one proceeding. Ms. Mearakishvili reportedly remained deprived of her identity documents and therefore unable to cross the Administrative Boundary Line. See www.icc-cpi.int/Georgia. Council of Europe, SG/Inf(2019)12, para. 24. According to a press release of the European Court of Human Rights of 31 August 2018 (ECHR 287 (2018)), almost 2,000 individual applications related to the conflict were pending, with some having been communicated to the relevant party. See ICRC news releases, “Missing in connection with 1990s, 2008 conflicts remains of 23 more people identified”, 12 March 2019; and “Missing since 1992–1993 Abkhazia conflict: Speeding up identification process”, 15 April 2019.