UN adopt international day to honor women searching for the missing persons

The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution—initiated by Syria—declaring December 19 as the International Day to Honor Women Searching for Missing Persons. This move recognizes their efforts to locate their loved ones and highlights the consequences they have faced during these endeavors.

In the resolution adopted yesterday, Monday, the General Assembly called upon Member States and relevant stakeholders to observe this international day by organizing events and activities that spotlight the efforts of women who have sought to discover the fate of missing persons and locate them. It also urged the adoption of concrete measures to prevent and end all forms of discrimination and violence against these women and to ensure their full enjoyment of human rights.

The resolution further encouraged member states and the UN system to involve women searching for missing persons in discussions regarding this issue and in relevant decision-making processes, ensuring that their experiences and needs are taken into account.

In a speech delivered prior to the resolution's adoption, Syria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Ibrahim Al-Olabi, stated that Syrian women have faced "the worst missing persons crisis in modern history." He noted that the adoption of the resolution marks a shift in how Syria addresses the issue of missing persons.

This marks the first resolution submitted by Syria to the UN General Assembly since the fall of the Ba'athist regime.

The resolution’s adoption comes as the issue of missing persons remains—according to the United Nations—one of the most significant humanitarian crises Syria has witnessed and continues to face. Large numbers of people remain missing, with unknown fates, resulting in profound legal, humanitarian, and psychological consequences for their families—particularly for the women who have spent years searching for their loved ones.

Sh-S

ANHA