A/HRC/5/7 page 6 20. Accordingly, a direct connection is made between the right to the truth and such measures as amnesties or other juridical arrangements of comparable effect, since these measures not only promote impunity: they also pose a major obstacle to efforts to uphold the right to the truth by inhibiting the conduct of full inquiries. 21. Some States also see links between the right to the truth and other rights, such as the right to information, and stress that it is enshrined in law and that there should be bodies entrusted with monitoring its observance. States also reaffirm the connection between the right to the truth and the right to reparation, since, by shedding light on violations, the right to the truth helps ensure that victims receive reparations and that further human rights violations are stopped. The right to the truth has also been associated with the duty of States to preserve memory: it requires the State to take the necessary steps to preserve the collective memory of gross human rights violations and of breaches of international humanitarian law, including by maintaining national archives and by making these available to the public. A. Obligation to investigate 22. As affirmed in the Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation, “the obligation to respect, ensure respect for and implement international human rights law and international humanitarian law … includes, inter alia, the duty to: … investigate violations effectively, promptly, thoroughly and impartially” (resolution 60/147, annex, para. 3 (b)). 23. To achieve this, the right to the truth is given effect through the conduct of judicial or non-judicial inquiries, which are of key significance (such as those conducted by an ombudsman). The right to the truth is tied up with the State’s obligation to conduct investigations and to prosecute, try and punish the perpetrators of gross human rights violations. States stress that, in the case of enforced disappearances, this obligation to investigate with a view to exposing human rights violations continues so long as the fate and welfare of the disappeared person and the circumstances in which the offence was committed remain unknown. 24. In this context, Argentina points out that the right to the truth must be interpreted as part of the general duty of States to investigate gross human rights violations, to accord reparation to victims and prosecute, try and punish those responsible for such violations. 25. Morocco refers to the obligation to seek the truth through a process of inquiry and, in this context, draws attention to its Equity and Reconciliation Commission. It explains that investigations conducted under the auspices of the Commission are concerned with gross human rights violations which are of a massive or systematic nature. 26. More specifically, Mexico stresses the vital role played by prosecutors and by the ombudsman’s office in conducting inquiries, both judicial and non-judicial, into human rights violations and in upholding the right to the truth. It points out that the goal of reasserting the truth was considerably promoted by disseminating the findings and their recommendations of inquiries conducted by the ombudsman’s office. The new special services set up under the office