A/HRC/17/21 memory, and how States get cooperation to preserve that memory, the example of the Council of Europe’s important recommendations addressing education and guidelines to prevent historical revisionism was highlighted. 36. The importance for truth commissions to have access to archives in other countries was also highlighted. A special problem with records in other countries is that the families of missing persons and other individuals affected do not know where the archives are located and thus from whom to request access. The same applies to Timor-Leste with the records located in Indonesia, and the connected issues of cooperation between the truth commission and the Indonesian military authorities. There have also been difficulties in obtaining documents from elsewhere outside Timor-Leste. 37. It was observed that media archives, especially those of State media, are important to truth-seeking and judicial processes, but that it is important to be aware that for various reasons, access to this material is difficult and using it requires specialized staff, which a commission may lack. 38. Turning to the question of the use of archives in reparations programmes, it was noted that in Chile there was no separate procedure that used archives to prove that reparations were justified. According to the law on reparations, if a person’s name was included in the list of victims in the truth commission report, the person was eligible for reparations. With regard to Spain, standards were established in 1979 for reparations and there was extensive use of public archives. For example, reparation for a political prisoner was based on the time spent in prison, so prison records were useful. Other sources were also used, such as the records of the Court of Accounts, which documented the expenditures on political prisoners in detention. 39. In Guatemala’s reparations programme, the truth commission report is important to validate a claim, as are city hall and municipal registers that provide birth and residence information. Victims may now also get information from police or other archives to support their reparations claim, and these archives are also accessible by families who need information to prove that a disappeared person did exist. In Timor-Leste the truth commission did not classify victims, so the proposed law on reparations provides for a registration programme that, because of lack of records, will have to depend on statements by local government officials and NGOs to verify a claim. 40. Attention was called to the importance of archives to memorialization efforts. Archives, especially legal documents and testimony and the reports of the truth commissions, enable, for example, the identification of certain places of torture and their cultural and historical importance. In Chile, for instance, there are approximately 200 memorials regarding such places, and the Museum of Memory and Human Rights has compiled testimony and background documentation on them for the purpose of raising awareness. VI. Placement of archives of repressive rule 41. With regard to the requirements of an archival system, the experts argued that whether permanent or temporary legislation is enacted, the archival system that is established must be based on national legislation and international standards and must have the necessary human and technical resources. The rule of law requires a good administrative policy that will ensure appropriate management and proper protection of both public and private documents, and access to those documents. A central archives administration must manage government records from the moment they come into being until they are either destroyed or preserved indefinitely. The central archives administration may report to the Head of Government or to a ministry or another appropriate governmental 9