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UN experts in forced disappearances to visit Ukraine

GENEVA, June 7. /TASS/.Three independent experts from the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances will arrive in Kiev on June 11 and meet with relatives of disappeared persons, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said in Geneva on Thursday.

"The experts will study measures adopted by the State to prevent and eradicate enforced disappearances, including issues related to truth, justice and reparation for victims, and will gather information on relevant cases," the statement says.

The working group plans meetings with relatives of the disappeared persons, representatives of civil society organizations, of relevant UN agencies, and Ukrainian officials. The delegation comprising Vice-Chair Tae-Ung Baik (South Korea), Henrikas Mickevicius (Lithuania) and Luciano Hazan (Argentina) is due to visit the capital of Kiev and other parts of the country.

Following the visit, a final report will be presented to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva in September 2019.

The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances was established in February 1980 by the UN Commission on Human Rights and consists of five members. In September 2014, the UN Human Rights Council adopted the latest resolution extending the Working Group’s mandate. The experts’ primary goal is to help families determine the fate or whereabouts of their relatives. The Working Group receives, scrutinizes and hands to governments the reports of enforced disappearances submitted by relatives or human rights organizations.

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