The Abductees’ Mothers Association participated, via Zoom, in the United Nations Annual Security and Peace Conference, where it presented its work in advocating for abductees and its ongoing efforts and negotiations aimed at securing their release.
Drawing on its experience accompanying thousands of families who endure the daily pain of detention and enforced disappearance, the Association explained that the concept of security for victims and their families differs from the conventional understanding. For them, security is not measured by the size of armed forces, but by knowing the truth, being able to live with dignity, and feeling that their rights and lives are protected.
The Association emphasized the importance of building trust within any security approach that places people at the center of security policies. This requires respecting fundamental rights, ensuring accountability, and preventing impunity in order to achieve a just and sustainable peace, especially after years of conflict have eroded trust in both official institutions and armed groups alike.
Through its work in supporting detainees, forcibly disappeared persons, and their families, and by providing legal, humanitarian, and psychosocial assistance, the Association stressed that the primary objective of any security policy must be the protection of people and their rights, and the ending of arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, torture, and other violations committed against civilians.
The Association also called for uncovering the truth, achieving justice, determining the fate of forcibly disappeared persons and detainees, securing their release, and holding those responsible accountable.
It further underscored the importance of involving local communities and victims in decision-making processes and addressing the social and economic consequences of the conflict, particularly for families that have lost their primary breadwinner due to detention or enforced disappearance.
The Association concluded its remarks by affirming that true security is not achieved when people live in fear of authority or weapons, but when they feel that their rights are protected, their voices are heard, and their human dignity is respected.
