CED/C/GC/1
United Nations
International Convention for
the Protection of All Persons
from Enforced Disappearance
Distr.: General
26 October 2023
Original: English
Committee on Enforced Disappearances
General comment No. 1 (2023) on enforced disappearance in
the context of migration*
I. Introduction
1.
For the purposes of the present general comment, the term “migrants” is used to refer
to persons who move away from their place of usual residence, whether within a country or
across an international border, temporarily or permanently, and for a variety of reasons,1 such
as family reunification or moving away from international or non-international armed
conflicts, persecution, discrimination, natural disasters, environmental degradation, the
effects of climate change, difficult economic situations or high crime rates. Numbers of
migrants worldwide remain high.2
2.
Migrants are in situations of particular vulnerability, which may arise from their
personal characteristics or socioeconomic status, the circumstances in which they travel –
including their undocumented status and language barriers – or the treatment or conditions
that they face in countries of origin, transit and destination, including border areas.3 The
universal human rights and fundamental freedoms of migrants must be respected, protected
and fulfilled at all times. 4 Although States have a sovereign prerogative to manage their
borders and regulate access to their territories, they must do so in full compliance with their
obligations under international law, 5 in particular human rights law, international
humanitarian law, international refugee law and the law of the sea.
3.
Already in a situation of vulnerability and faced with restrictive immigration policies
and dehumanizing border governance tactics,6 thousands of migrants die, disappear or go
missing each year, leading to humanitarian crises in many regions of the world.7 The issue is
a high priority at the international level. In its resolution 74/148 on the protection of migrants,
the General Assembly called for international cooperation to save lives, prevent the deaths
of and injuries to migrants and identify migrants who have died or gone missing. The
objectives of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, adopted in 2018,
* Adopted by the Committee at its twenty-fifth session (11–29 September 2023).
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
International Organization for Migration (IOM), “IOM definition of ‘migrant’”.
A/76/642, para. 11. See also IOM, Global Migration Data Analysis Centre, “International migrant
stocks”, Migration Data Portal. Available at
https://www.migrationdataportal.org/themes/international-migrant-stocks.
Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, objective 7. See also the Guiding
Principles for the Search for Disappeared Persons (CED/C/7, annex), principle 9; and African
Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Guidelines on the Protection of All Persons from
Enforced Disappearances in Africa (2022), para. 1.3.2.
Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, para. 4.
Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, general recommendation No. 38
(2020) on trafficking in women and girls in the context of global migration, para. 23.
A/HRC/50/31, para. 24. See also CED/C/GRC/CO/1, para. 28; CED/C/MEX/VR/1 (Findings),
para. 20; and CED/C/MEX/VR/1 (Recommendations), paras. 39–42.
A/72/335, para. 1.
GE.23-19531 (E)
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