Grażyna Baranowska nominated to UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances

Dr Grażyna Baranowska, a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellow at the Hertie School Centre for Fundamental Rights, was appointed to the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances on 8 July 2022. After a competitive, multi-step nomination process that included an interview with the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Consultative Group, she was ranked first on the shortlist of candidates and subsequently recommended for the position by the UNHRC President.

First established in 1980, the working group is made up of five independent human rights experts elected for a three-year period. Their main task is to help families determine the fate or whereabouts of their family members who have been reported missing. The working group also assists states in implementing the Declaration on the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance. They adopt guidelines used by governments worldwide, carry out country visits and provide advisory services upon request.

Baranowska is a recognised expert on enforced disappearances. Her many publications include her 2021 book, a 2021 Israel Law Review article and an International Review of the Red Cross article on the rights of families of disappeared people. On behalf of the German Institute for Human Rights, she authored a report on the relevance of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances (ICPPED) for disappeared migrants and refugees. Baranowska also participated in drafting the concept note of the first General Comment on “Enforced Disappearances in the context of migration”, which was adopted by the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances in April 2022.

Baranowska’s first session with the working group will take place in September 2022 in Geneva.

Learn more about the mission of the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances:

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