LAHORE: On the eve of the International Day of the Disappeared, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has reiterated its demand that the government adopt effective measures to rid the country of the curse of enforced disappearances, beginning with immediate ratification of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

In a statement issued on Friday, the commission said: “On the International Day of the Disappeared, that falls on Saturday, Aug 30, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan joins worldwide campaign by the various human rights organisations in calling for an end to disappearances and the culture of impunity that keeps the practice alive.”

It further said while it was gratifying to note the incidence of enforced disappearance had declined to some extent in Balochistan, increased number of cases continued to be reported from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh.

“What is particularly unacceptable is the fact that the victims are mostly persons known for political dissent or communitarian activism. Further, in a majority of cases the victim families blame the law enforcement personnel for picking up their relatives and detaining them indefinitely. Obviously the redress mechanisms, and judicial forums, have not been able to expedite recovery of the disappeared people. Little progress has been made on the need to punish those responsible for enforced disappearances and for a comprehensive, nationwide programme to compensate the victims,” the statement added.

The HRCP further called upon the government to expedite all measures necessary for putting an end to the disappearances. The process, it suggested, could begin with ratification of the International Convention on Disappearances, which had already been ratified by 43 states and signed by another 50 countries.

It should be a matter of concern in Islamabad that Pakistan was counted among the countries that had a significant number of the 43,000 unresolved cases of disappearance worldwide, the statement concluded.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2014