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Section
The missing - a major ICRC initiative
Section on the ICRC’s call for action to deal with the problem of people unaccounted for as a result of armed conflict or internal violence and to assist their families; extensive documentation on the missing and on meetings dealing with the problem.

The ICRC carries out a range of activities to resolve the problem of people unaccounted for as a result of armed conflict or internal violence and to assist their families.

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Countries where the ICRC carries out activities in favour of the missing.

Its aim is to heighten awareness among governments, the military, international and national organizations – including the worldwide Red Cross and Red Crescent network – and the general public about the tragedy of people unaccounted for as a result of armed conflict or internal violence, including the anguish faced by their families.

The ICRC creates and distributes tools for action and communication to ensure accountability on the part of the authorities responsible for resolving the problem of missing people, to better assist their families and to prevent further disappearances.

See also

  • Missing persons and international humanitarian law
  • Restoring contact between families separated by war
  • ICRC statements to the Commission on human rights

  • Key document
      28-8-2007
      Missing Persons - A hidden tragedy
      People have gone missing as long as men have been fighting wars. The plight of people missing in armed conflict and the suffering of their families has been a consistent concern to the ICRC. This specially commissioned report, written by an independent journalist, turns the spotlight onto the plight of missing persons and their families.
      (Focus\Missing persons)
      ICRC Publication

    Feature
      23-6-2008
      Kenya: ICRC forensic expert helps identify victims of post-election violence
      Following the post-electoral violence that shook Kenya in early 2008, the Kenyan Ministry of Health requested help from the ICRC to support local forensic teams identify badly decomposed or burned bodies. The ICRC sent three of its forensic experts to Kenya between January and June 2008. The ICRC’s Nicole Engelbrecht reports from Nairobi.
      (The ICRC worldwide\Africa\Kenya)
      Feature Includes Photo

      4-4-2008
      Chechnya: Gawza says she is all cried out
      In January 2008 the ICRC embarked on a programme designed to assess the legal, administrative, psychological and psycho-social needs of people who have a loved one missing. Virginie, a psychologist, and Aïna – both working for the ICRC in Grozny – visited Gawza, whose son is missing.
      (The ICRC worldwide\Eastern Europe and Central Asia\Russia)
      Feature Includes Photo

      29-2-2008
      Iran: long years of incertitude and anguish
      During the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-88, tens of thousands of soldiers went missing on both sides. In Iran alone, the families of some 11,000 people continue to wait for news. Close-up on three Iranian women who have lived through the pain of uncertainty.
      (Focus\Women and war)
      Feature Includes Photo

    Field newsletter
      25-4-2008
      Missing persons on the territory of former Yugoslavia
      The families of more than 17,000 persons who went missing as a result of the past decade's conflicts in former Yugoslavia are still waiting for news on their missing relatives. They have the right to know the fate of their loved ones. It is the responsibility of respective authorities to address this fundamental right of the families by releasing official information on the whereabouts of people unaccounted for. Only answers can put an end to, or at least alleviate, the suffering of the families.
      (The ICRC worldwide\Western and Central Europe and the Balkans\Serbia)
      Field newsletter

    ICRC film
      16-12-2004
      Where are they now? Restoring and maintaining family links: the worldwide network of the ICRC and the Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies
      Uncertainty over the fate of a loved one causes untold suffering in wartime. This film captures how the ICRC Central Tracing Agency, together with Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies all over the world, works to alleviate this suffering. It illustrates the different means and methods used in the essential efforts to trace family members and to restore family links. From distributing Red Cross messages and organizing family reunifications to visiting persons deprived of their freedom, the work undertaken brings welcome news and relief to thousands of people every year.
      (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\Protection)
      ICRC film Includes Video

      31-12-2003
      The Missing: end the silence
      The Missing: end the silence is a longer film (14 min.) also focusing on testimonials and is intended to heighten awareness of the issue of The Missing. It encourages action to be taken to resolve the problem and to guarantee the fundamental right of the families involved to know the fate of a missing relative.
      (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\Protection)
      ICRC film Includes Video

      31-12-2003
      The Missing: the right to know
      The Missing: the right to know is a short video (4 min. 30 sec.) which is ideal for opening meetings and discussions, providing a concise overview, through a series of testimonials, of the problem of those who remain unaccounted for.
      (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Films\Protection)
      ICRC film Includes Video

    ICRC Publication
      29-8-2007
      Missing Persons - A hidden tragedy
      People have gone missing as long as men have been fighting wars. The plight of people missing in armed conflict and the suffering of their families has been a consistent concern to the ICRC. This specially commissioned report, written by an independent journalist, turns the spotlight onto the plight of missing persons and their families.
      (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Protection)
      ICRC Publication Includes PDF

      28-8-2006
      The Missing: ICRC progress report
      In 2002, the ICRC began looking at ways of better assisting people missing as a result of armed conflict or internal violence, and their relatives. Following an International Conference of Governmental and Non-Governmental Experts (held in 2003), the Agenda for Humanitarian Action was adopted, which sets out clear objectives for the States and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement to achieve between 2004 and 2007.
      (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Protection)
      ICRC Publication Includes PDF

      10-4-2006
      Management of dead bodies after disasters: a field manual for first responders
      Dignified and proper management of the dead in disasters is fundamental to help the families know the fate of their relatives and mourn their dead. This manual is intended for use by those first on the scene following a disaster when no specialists are at hand. It provides basic guidance to manage the recovery, basic identification, storage and disposal of dead bodies following disasters, to ensure that no information is lost and that the dead are treated with respect.
      (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Assistance)
      ICRC Publication Includes PDF

      1-12-2005
      Missing people, DNA Analysis and Identification of Human Remains- a guide to best practice in armed conflicts and other situations of armed violence
      The process of identifying human remains in the wake of a conflict may be subject to multiple constraints, security and lack of resources being the two most common and important of many. Such constraints may limit or even preclude the use of more sophisticated technologies. This document sets down guidelines for achieving best practice in the face of such constraints.
      (Info resources\ICRC publications and films\Publications\Protection)
      ICRC Publication Includes PDF

    International Review of the Red Cross
      30-6-2006
      The missing and transitional justice: the right to know and the fight against impunity
      The authors look at the ways in which transitional justice mechanisms may support the right of families to know the fate of their relatives, and how work to resolve the missing persons issue can be reconciled with an effective fight against impunity.
      (Info resources\International Review\2006 - No. 862)
      International Review of the Red CrossMonique Crettol, Anne-Marie La Rosa Includes PDF

      28-1-2003
      Special issue of the International Review of the Red Cross
      This special issue examines protection work and restoration of family links, support for the families of missing persons, collection and management of personal data, and mechanisms for handling cases of missing persons.
      (Focus\Missing persons)
      International Review of the Red Cross

    Interview
      27-8-2007
      The Missing: preventing disappearances and finding answers
      On the occasion of the International Day of the Disappeared on 30 August, Renée Zellweger Monin, head of the ICRC's Task Force on the Missing, talks about how the organization is working to prevent disappearances and bring news to the long-suffering families of the missing.
      (Focus\Missing persons)
      Interview Includes Photo

    Photo Collection
      29-2-2008
      Women and the Missing: living between hope and despair
      A large majority of those who disappear or are killed in armed conflict or other situations of violence are men, and thus the burden and anguish of clarifying their fate falls to the women left behind. This collection of images and text describes the ordeals women face when their male relatives go missing and what the ICRC is doing to support them.
      (Info resources\Photos)
      Photo Collection Includes Photo

      14-9-2007
      Peru: turning the right to know into reality
      Years after the end of the conflict that rocked Peru in the 1980s, many families still do not know what happened to relatives who disappeared. The ICRC is supporting efforts by a number of State and civil society bodies to end the suffering of these families and to turn their right to know into reality.
      (Info resources\Photos\The Americas)
      Photo Collection Includes Photo

      23-8-2007
      The Missing: the faces of those left behind
      This collection of images and text illustrates the worldwide human tragedy of the missing and describes the ICRC's efforts to prevent disappearances and help families of the victims learn the fate of their loved ones.
      (Info resources\Photos)
      Photo Collection Includes Photo

    Press article
      29-4-2008
      The Missing: a hidden tragedy
      Uncertainty about the fate of their loved ones is a harsh reality for countless families of people unaccounted for as a result of armed conflict or internal violence. Much remains to be done to address this pressing humanitarian issue and to help families cope with the trauma - Article published in the Red Cross Red Crescent Magazine, No 1, 2008.
      (Focus\Missing persons)
      Press article

    Report
    Video Collection
      18-10-2007
      Nepal: The wait continues
      In November 2001, twenty workers from Jogimara in Dhading District headed off to Kalikot to work at the airport construction site: 17 of them did not return home. There has been no official word on their fate and their families have no idea what happened to them.
      (Info resources\Video)
      Video Collection Includes Video

    More in this section
      31-8-2007
      Restoring family links – project bulletin No. 3
      Our relationships — with family and friends — play an essential role in defining our identities and provide us with a sense of security and stability. If they break down, important elements of our identity are lost and so is our primary source of support. The Restoring Family Links (RFL) Strategy for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement puts these ties back at the heart of the Movement’s activities.
      (ICRC Activities\Protection\Restoring family links)
      Includes PDF

      28-7-2006
      Restoring family links – project bulletin No. 2
      Building on the Agenda for Humanitarian Action adopted by the 28th International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent in 2003, the ICRC has launched a global initiative to strengthen the Red Cross and Red Crescent Family Links Network over the coming decade. The purpose of the project is to build a dynamic network of tracing services that can respond quickly and efficiently to the needs of separated families.
      (ICRC Activities\Protection\Restoring family links)
      Includes PDF

      30-11-2005
      Restoring family links – project bulletin No. 1
      In December 2004, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement launched a project to develop its work on restoring family links. The aim is to meet the humanitarian needs of people separated from their families. Project Bulletin No. 1 explains the main phases of creating a strategy for the coming ten years.
      (ICRC Activities\Protection\Restoring family links)
      Includes PDF

      13-3-2003
      "The Missing": Documentation of reference database
      This database is portail on public documentation regarding the issue of persons unaccounted for, due to armed conflict or internal violence, and of their families. It should raise awareness about this tragic human problem and support the activities of all actors involved in preventing persons from becoming unaccounted for, in clarifying the fate of those who have become missing and in supporting their families.
      (Focus\Missing persons)

    Other site
      8-2-2007
      International Federation of Family Associations of Missing Persons from Armed Conflicts
      IFFAMPAC is an international humanitarian non-governmental organization working with family associations of missing persons from armed conflicts worldwide. IFFAMPAC focuses on the surviving families of armed conflict who face tremendous social, economic, legal, and cultural challenges when a primary economic provider of the family vanishes and cannot be accounted for as a result of conflict.
      (Info resources\Other sites\Non-governmental organizations)
      Other site

      23-2-2005
      International Tracing Service in Arolsen
      The International Tracing Service at Bad Arolsen (ITS) serves victims of Nazi persecutions and their families by documenting their fate through the archives it manages. The ITS preserves these historic records and makes them available for research.
      (Info resources\Other sites\Red Cross and Red Crescent)
      Other site



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    28-08-2008