Message on the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances
強迫失蹤受害者國際日致辭

30 August 2016
2016年8月30日

The classic image of a victim of enforced disappearance is that of a person being deprived of liberty, taken to a secret place of detention, and being kept there without any further contact with the outside world. Yet victims of enforced disappearances are also the parents, children, partners or friends of those who have disappeared; anguished women and men desperately seeking any information, even if only a clue, that will lead them to their loved ones.
強迫失蹤受害者的典型形象是：一個人在失去自由后，被帶往一個秘密羈押地點，被關(guān)在那里，與外界失去任何聯(lián)系。然而，失蹤者的父母、子女、伴侶或朋友也是強迫失蹤行為的受害者；痛苦不堪的婦女和男子迫不及待地打聽能夠讓他們找到親人的任何消息，哪怕只是一點線索。

According to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, a victim is also “any individual who has suffered harm as the direct result of an enforced disappearance”. With the support of their communities, human rights defenders, and non-governmental organizations, these victims seek and demand adequate responses from the authorities. They have a right to know the truth regarding the circumstances of these disappearances, the progress and results of any investigations, and ultimately, the fate and whereabouts of their loved ones.
根據(jù)《保護(hù)所有人免遭強迫失蹤國際公約》的規(guī)定，受害者也包括“任何因強迫失蹤而受到直接傷害的個人”。在社區(qū)、維護(hù)人權(quán)人士和非政府組織的協(xié)助下，這些受害者尋求和要求政府部門作出適當(dāng)回應(yīng)。他們有權(quán)了解這些失蹤事件的真相、任何調(diào)查的進(jìn)展情況和結(jié)果，并最終知道自己親人的命運和下落。

All States have an obligation to investigate, prosecute and punish enforced disappearances, as well as to provide redress to its victims. However, victims often face a lack of responsiveness or outright hostility from the authorities to which they reach out. The Committee on Enforced Disappearances and the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, the two main United Nations expert mechanisms in this realm, have received accounts of reprisals such as arbitrary arrests, threats, and intimidation against relatives, or against the human rights defenders, lawyers, and non-governmental organizations that support them.
所有國家均有義務(wù)調(diào)查、起訴和懲處強迫失蹤行為，并向強迫失蹤行為的受害者提供補救。然而，受害者在與政府部門接觸時，往往要面對不理不睬或公然敵視的情況。強迫失蹤問題委員會和強迫或非自愿失蹤問題工作組是聯(lián)合國在這一領(lǐng)域的兩個主要專家機(jī)制，它們負(fù)責(zé)接收關(guān)于各種打擊報復(fù)的陳述，例如任意逮捕、威脅和恐嚇親屬或向其提供協(xié)助的維護(hù)人權(quán)人士、律師和非政府組織的行為。

On this International Day, I call on States to acknowledge that family members and friends of the disappeared are also victims, and to guarantee their right to full protection from any form of reprisals. I also urge all Member States to sign, ratify or accede to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, which includes specific provisions against the ill-treatment or intimidation of witnesses, relatives, and persons participating in the investigation of enforced disappearances.
值此國際日之際，我呼吁各國認(rèn)識到，失蹤者的家庭成員和朋友也是受害者，并保障他們受到充分保護(hù)的權(quán)利，免遭任何形式的打擊報復(fù)。我還敦促所有成員國簽署、批準(zhǔn)或加入《保護(hù)所有人免遭強迫失蹤國際公約》，該公約明確規(guī)定不得虐待或恐嚇證人、親屬及參與調(diào)查強迫失蹤行為的人員。

Let us all show solidarity with the victims and their relatives as they strive to realize their right for truth and justice.
讓我們所有人都表示聲援，支持受害者及其親屬努力實現(xiàn)了解真相和尋求正義的權(quán)利。