A/HRC/16/70 I. Introduction 1. In its resolution 7/28 on missing persons, the Human Rights Council decided to hold a panel discussion on the question of missing persons at its ninth session, and requested the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to prepare a summary of the panel’s deliberations with a view to subsequently charging the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee, at the same session, with the preparation of a study on best practices in the matter. 2. Pursuant to resolution 7/28, the Human Rights Council held a panel discussion on the question of missing persons at its ninth session, with the participation of experts of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and delegates of Governments and nongovernmental organizations, national human rights institutions and international organizations. The Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) prepared a summary of the panel’s deliberations (A/HRC/10/10). 3. The Human Rights Council subsequently adopted decision 9/101, in which it renewed its request to the Advisory Committee to prepare the study and to submit it to the Council at its twelfth session. 4. The Advisory Committee, at its second session, held from 26 to 30 January 2009, set up a drafting group with the task of preparing a study on best practices in the matter of missing persons, and designated the following as its members: Ansar Burney, Chinsung Chung, Wolfgang Stefan Heinz (Chairperson), Latif Hüseynov (Rapporteur), Miguel Alfonso Martínez and Bernards Andrews Nyamwaya Mudho. The drafting group was also requested to submit the results of its work on the study to the Advisory Committee at its third session with a view to submitting them to the Council at its twelfth session. 5. The Advisory Committee, at its third session, held from 3 to 7 August 2009, continued its deliberations on the issue of missing persons. As a result of those deliberations, it adopted recommendation 3/2 entitled “Missing persons”, in which the Committee noted that considerable difficulties had been encountered by the drafting group in finding the necessary information and research resources, and requested the latter to submit the results of its work on the study to the Advisory Committee at its fourth session, with a view to submitting them to the Council at its fourteenth session. 6. In its decision 12/117, the Human Rights Council took note of recommendation 3/2 and requested the Advisory Committee to submit the study to the Council at its fourteenth session. 7. In order to continue its work on the above-mentioned study, the drafting group of the Advisory Committee elaborated a questionnaire addressed to Governments, which was transmitted by note verbale dated 2 November 2009 by the secretariat. A total of 22 replies were received from States. 8. The Advisory Committee, at its fourth session, held from 25 to 29 January 2010, continued its deliberations on the issue of missing persons and held an exchange of views with a representative of the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. The Committee endorsed the progress report prepared on the issue by its drafting group (A/HRC/14/42), which was transmitted to the Council for its consideration at its fourteenth session. 9. In its decision 14/118, the Human Rights Council took note of the above-mentioned progress report and requested the Advisory Committee to finalize the study on the best practices in the matter of missing persons and to submit it to the Council at its sixteenth session. At its sixth session, the Advisory Committee considered the finalized version of 3