يشارك
Sarajevo 16 May 2024: The Missing Persons Group (MPG), established at the Western Balkans Berlin Process summit in London, as a group of institutions tasked with resolving the issue of missing persons in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, and Serbia presented its efforts and achievements to date outlining the importance of the regional cooperation in resolving the remaining missing persons cases in the countries of former Yugoslavia.
“In the Western Balkans, roughly 75 percent of the 40,000 persons reported missing during the conflicts of the 1990s have been accounted for. Regional cooperation has been a cornerstone of this unprecedented result. Continued and enhanced work of the MPG together with families of the missing is crucial in resolving the remaining missing persons cases and upholding the rights of the families to truth and justice”, said Matthew Holliday, ICMP Program Director, Europe.
“The UK Government is committed to supporting efforts to identify the estimated 11,000 people who are still missing as a result of the conflict in the former Yugoslavia. The work of MPG remains very important. The group has become a focal point for regional cooperation and strengthening resilience in relation to post-conflict recovery across the Western Balkans. Extraordinary results have been achieved, such as the Regional Database and the work of the NN working group, but we still have a long way to go,” H.E. Mr. Julian Reilly, British Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina said.
“The MPG – whose representatives are here today – is indeed a multilateral mechanism that works. This particular type of regional cooperation is a strong plank in the former Yugoslavia’s post-conflict recovery. We – you – do work together! The fact that the MPG reports to all countries involved in the Berlin process not only ensures accountability, but it also elevates the profile of missing persons regionally and globally. We must keep up that transborder cooperation,” said Dr. Thomas Fitschen, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Bosnia and Herzegovina
“We have created robust mechanisms and tools to enhance the missing persons process, such as the regional database of still unaccounted missing persons. It is a powerful tool used every day to resolve the fate of persons who disappeared. We have established a sustainable and functional mechanism to resolve NN cases through activities of the NN Operational group that regularly meets and achieves good results. Today, the Regional Coordination Network of Associations of families of missing persons is active and it has established the Women Forum, a platform for discussion and sharing of experience of women in the missing persons process,” said Marko Jurisic, Chairman of the Board of the Directors of Missing Persons Institute of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“Due to the nature of wars from the 90s, resolution of the missing persons issue is not possible only within its remit. This shows that governments of the countries accounting for missing persons should cooperate at all levels to obtain good, reliable information that will facilitate resolution of the fate of missing persons, primarily for the benefit of their families, but also the entire society. The relevant authorities of the Republic of Croatia will continue to participate in implementation of the Framework Plan in the coming period. In doing so, pursuant to the provisions of the Framework Plan, we highlight our willingness to convey, as an EU member country, the acquired knowledge and experience to other members of the MPG in the issues related to the currently topical EU accession processes.”, said Visnja Bilic from the Directorate for Detained and Missing Persons of the Ministry of Croatian Veterans.
“We believe it is important for everyone to focus on resolving these cases to ensure that our interstate relations continue in normal neighboring relations, and are stable in the future. This is a key point in ensuring our citizens have a quiet and secure life. Thanking all the involved stakeholders, we hope that the missing persons group with even greater intensity will produce concrete results in the future regarding the fate of missing persons,” said Andin Hoti, Chairman of the Kosovo Government Commission on Missing Persons in the message he sent since due to personal reasons could not attend the event.
“The complexity and sensitivity of the process of accounting for 11.000 missing persons still unaccounted on in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, obliges all those who are a part of this process, to contribute within their responsibilities and capabilities to its resolution”, said Dragan Đukanović, President of the Commission on Missing Persons of Montenegro
“The booklet which we have promote here today is a reminder on what we have achieved, but a lot of work is in front of us. I would like to call my colleagues to intensify our regional and bilateral cooperation in order to achieve more results on the regional level. I also call on the families of the missing to be even more unified and to hold us even more to account as all the work we do is for the families of the missing,” said Veljko Odalovic, Head of Commission on Missing Persons of the Government of the Republic of Serbia.
More information on the work of Missing Persons Group is available in the booklet published today – ICMP Regional Cooperation in Accounting for Missing Persons in the Western Balkans – The Missing Persons Group
Background
As a result of the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia, 40,000 people went missing. To date, 75 percent have been accounted for through the combined and continuous efforts of the authorities with support provided by the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) and with the broad and active participation of families of the missing.
In July 2018 at a Berlin Process Summit in London, the Prime Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Croatia, Germany, the United Kingdom, Austria, Bulgaria, France, Italy, Slovenia and Poland signed a joint declaration reiterating their commitment to the regional effort to account for those still missing from the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia.
After the signing of the London Declaration, in November 2018 at ICMP’s Headquarters in The Hague representatives of the domestic institutions that are responsible for accounting for missing persons in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia signed a Framework Plan that lays out steps to formalize their multilateral cooperation and increase their effectiveness in accounting for missing persons throughout the region. The Joint Framework Plan outlines key areas of cooperation, including the establishment of the Missing Persons Group (MPG), and engagement of families in implementing the Plan. The Missing Persons Group comprises senior representatives of the institutions in the region that are responsible for addressing missing persons issues. It plays a role in supervising operations under a Framework Plan signed in November 2018 at ICMP’s Headquarters in The Hague. The Government of the United Kingdom and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany are financing the implementation of the Framework Plan.
* * *
ICMP is a treaty-based intergovernmental organization with Headquarters in The Hague, the Netherlands. Its mandate is to secure the cooperation of governments and others in locating missing persons from conflict, human rights abuses, disasters, organized crime, irregular migration and other causes and to assist them in doing so. It is the only international organization tasked exclusively to work on the issue of missing persons
