NCJ Number
129438
Journal
Rutgers Law Journal Volume: 13 Issue: 3 Dated: (Spring 1982) Pages: 531-577
Date Published
1982
Length
47 pages
Annotation
This analysis of "disappearance" as a means by which a government systematically eliminates political opposition focuses on its nature, a legal framework for analyzing it under international law regarding human rights, and possible responses within the international legal system and the domestic legal systems of other countries.
Abstract
The term disappearance was first used to describe situations in Latin America in which individuals known to have been taken into custody by governmental authorities were reported by friends and family members to have simply vanished without a trace. Efforts to obtain information on these individuals' whereabouts were useless, because the governmental authorities denied that they had ever been detained. The lack of legal safeguards and the government's acquiescence in the practice of disappearance limits the prospects for domestic remedies for the problem. However, under international law, disappearances can be regarded as crimes against humanity, breaches of international agreements on human rights, and international crimes of State. The procedural responses reflect the differences of disappearances. In addition, countries outside those in which the disappearances occurred can be encouraged to adjudicate such cases. Footnotes