Statement of Solidarity on the International Day of the Disappeared

On this day, we commemorate the International Day of the Disappeared, and we continue to find hope in our struggle for justice for environmental defenders who were forcibly disappeared and taken from their families, their communities, and the lands and ecosystems they fight for.

The Asia Pacific Network for Environmental Defenders (APNED) has long recognized enforced disappearances as one of the key threats facing environmental defenders throughout the region, wielded by governments and corporations as a cruel instrument to silence and instill fear amongst communities and organizations who resist environmental destruction. 

From 2012 to 2023, Global Witness has recorded 92 cases of enforced disappearances of land and environmental defenders globally, amounting to more than 8 defenders disappearing per year. In Southeast Asia, there has been an alarming trend of short-term enforced disappearances, especially in the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia. Indigenous communities all over the Asia Pacific have also been targeted, with particular attention to indigenous youth leaders in the case of India and the Adivasi indigenous people. 

Enforced disappearances are cruel punishments not only for the disappeared, but also for their families, friends, and communities who continue to be stuck in limbo and unable to pursue legal action, since they do not know whether the victim is dead or alive. Women who are forcibly disappeared face additional layers of violence, including sexual harassment and assault, alongside other physical and psychological threats. The impact of enforced disappearances also extends beyond the individual victim to their families, leaving children and dependents in emotional and financial turmoil. 

APNED reiterates the need for stronger reporting, protection, and accountability mechanisms dealing with enforced disappearances at different levels, and for these mechanisms to be accessible to the general public. States and multi-state entities must become willing and able to prosecute perpetrators of disappearances, who are usually state actors or agents of corporations that are closely linked with government actors as well. 

Lastly, we condemn the growing militarization of marginalized communities, which has set the stage for and actively contributed not only to enforced disappearances, but to the growing number of human rights violations faced by environmental defenders all throughout the Asia-Pacific. 

SURFACE ALL DISAPPEARED ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENDERS!
STOP THE MILITARIZATION OF MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES!
DEFEND ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENDERS!