Three women and five children were ‘detained’ in Pakistan in 2004, along with Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, who was one of the so called 14 ‘high value detainees’ tortured under the CIA’s Rendition Programme1. While he was taken to Guantanamo Bay after years of unimaginable cruelty and suffering, the women and children have never been heard from again.

Disappearance is particularly cruel to the families of the disappeared. Their painful reality is the powerlessness connected with not even knowing whether their loved ones are dead or alive. Torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment often accompany those who are disappeared; so if they are released, they must live with the scars, both inner and outer, of their time held against their will.

30th August marks the International Day of the Disappeared. Disappearance, defined as abduction, arrest or detention by the state or its agents, is one of the cruellest forms of human rights violations and it impacts many people around the world. When we think of disappearance, we conjure images of South American or African countries; but it is happening in so called ‘developed’ countries too; places like the United States (as was the case for Canadian citizen Maher Arar). Enforced disappearance has been pervasive since the so called ‘war on terror’ where people have been abducted and detained in prisons across the world.

Before two of our own citizens ended up in Guantanamo Bay, they were disappeared and their whereabouts concealed from their families. Imagine the relief matched with despair when they found out that they were still alive, yet held in a place of horrible cruelty.

Although the UN has adopted the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, those who are responsible for disappearances are rarely brought to justice. As with all human rights issues, ‘political will’ is the key to dispensing ‘justice’ rather than any legal system. As global citizens, we all hold responsibility to demand justice for to those who are voiceless.

Be part of the movement to fight against disappearence. Visit the International Coalition Against Enforced Disappearances website to join Amnesty International in giving a voice to the voiceless.

References

  1. See ICRC report into the 14 high value detainees; and, Recently declassified OLC memos can be read about at Amnesty website http://www.amnesty.org.au/hrs/comments/20923/