Source description last updated: 3 September 2021

In brief: The Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) is a United Nations body of independent experts that considers reports submitted by UN member states on their compliance with the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

Coverage on ecoi.net:
State reports, concluding observations as well as NGO reports and reports of national human rights institutions (for countries of priorities A-C).
Covered monthly on ecoi.net.

Mission/Mandate/Objectives:

“The International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance is designed to protect all persons from disappearances, to prevent their occurrence, to provide support to victims and guide States as to the measures to take to promote the rights of the Convention, and enhance cooperation and assistance between States.” (CED Website, Introduction, undated)

“The Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) is the body of independent experts which monitors implementation of the Convention by the States Parties. Its responsibilities include:

• Examining reports from States parties, and making recommendations on the topic of enforced disappearances in that State [...]
• Registering requests for urgent action [...]
• Receiving individual complaints from victims of a violation of the Convention by a State party [...]
• Receiving communications in which a State party claims that another State party is not fulfilling its obligations under the Convention; so-called inter-state communications [...]” (CED website, Introduction, undated)

“The Committee on Enforced Disappearances and the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID) coexist and cooperate to assist States in their fight against enforced disappearances.“ [...]”  (CED website, Introduction, undated)

Funding:
UN budget.

Scope of reporting:
Geographic focus: State parties to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance
Thematic focus: Enforced disappearances.

Methodology:

“The Committee on Enforced Disappearances has developed treaty-specific reporting guidelines to advise States Parties on the form and content of the reports which shall be submitted to the Committee under article 29 of the Convention [...] The Committee attaches great importance to the inclusion in the State Parties reports of information related to the actual implementation of the Convention as well as progress achieved and obstacles encountered. The Committee encourages the involvement of families of victims’ organizations, human rights defenders working on the issue of enforced disappearance, non-governmental organizations and National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) in the process of consultations leading to the preparation of reports.” (CED Website, Working methods, undated)

“State reports under the treaty body reporting system consist of two parts: a common core document and treaty-specific document. The common core document should include general information about the reporting State and its general framework for the protection and promotion of human rights [...] Information included in the common core document should not be repeated in the treaty-specific document but just cross-referenced, when necessary. [...] the Committee may request that the common core document be updated if it considers that the information it contains is out of date. [...] The treaty-specific document should contain specific information relating to the implementation of articles 1-25 of the Convention. The report should reflect in all its parts the actual situation with regard to the practical implementation of the Convention and progress achieved and obstacles encountered [...]” (Guidelines on the form and content of reports under article 29 to be submitted by States parties to the Convention, adopted by the Committee at its second session (26–30 March 2012), Committee on Enforced Disappearances, 8 June 2012)

The reports are examined by the Committee. “The examination of a report takes the form of a dialogue between the delegation from the reporting State and the Committee members held in public meetings. The aim of the dialogue is to enhance the Committee’s understanding of the situation in the State party as it pertains to the Convention and to provide advice on how to improve the implementation of the Convention provisions in the State party.  [...] Concluding Observations are discussed and adopted in a closed plenary meeting by the Committee following the examination of the State party’s report. The Concluding Observations follow a standard format which consists of a brief introduction, followed by a section noting positive aspects, another with the subjects of concern and related recommendations, and a last one on follow-up and dissemination.” (CED Website, Working methods, undated)

“Once adopted, the Concluding Observations are transmitted to the State party concerned and, after the conclusion of the session, posted on the Committee’s webpage, under the respective session. [...] the Committee may identify some of its recommendations that are particularly serious, urgent, protective, and/or can be achieved within short periods of time, about which it would like to receive information from the State party on measures taken towards their implementation.” (CED Website, Working methods, undated)

Languages of publications:
English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic, Chinese

Further reading / links:
CED Website, International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, undated
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CED/Pages/ConventionCED.aspx

Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, Fact Sheet No. 6/Rev.3, undated
http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/FactSheet6Rev3.pdf

10th Anniversary of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, undated
http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/CED/Brochure10thAnniversaryCED_EN.pdf


All links accessed 3 September 2021.

Methodological note:

ecoi.net's source descriptions contain background information on an organisation’s mission & objective, funding and reporting methodology, as well as on how we cover the source. The descriptions were prepared after researching publicly accessible information within time constraints. Most information contained in a source description was taken from the source itself. The aim is to provide a brief introduction to the sources covered regularly, offering information on relevant aspects in one place in a systematic manner.