Report on – 33rd IC Resolution 4: Restoring Family Links while respecting privacy, including as it relates to personal data protection (33IC/19/R4) – Switzerland

¿ Ha incorporado el Estado/la Sociedad Nacional/la institución los empeños contenidos en esta resolución en los planes estratégicos u operativos pertinentes?

Los compromisos han sido incorporados en
estrategia
política
legislación o normativa (p. ej. ley, reglamentación, estatutos, reglamento, etc.)

A internacional, nacional nivel

Explicación:

Switzerland, together with the ICRC, the Swiss Red Cross, the Swiss Interdepartmental committee on IHL and other national actors, has launched a joint process to do a mapping and conduct an analysis of the Swiss response to the issue of the missing, separated and dead. This initiative aims to bring together different national actors, to exchange know-how and – depending on the outcome – to fill in any potential gaps. The process is closely accompanied by the ICRC, namely the Central Tracing Agency, and the Swiss Red Cross.

In 2020, Switzerland, the ICRC and OCHA have launched the Humanitarian Data and Trust Initiative. Through this initiative, a dialogue process related to responsible data sharing between humanitarian organizations and donors was initiated. The goal was to examine and build a common understanding around the objectives, risks and constraints related to this type of data sharing in humanitarian action in order to develop a framework for collective action in this area. The dialogue consisted of two meetings, two pieces of independent research (conducted by the Global Public Policy Institute and the University of Manchester in 2020-2021), and a series of stakeholder consultation.

In 2021, Switzerland, together with the ICRC, launched the Global Alliance for the Missing. This cross-regional group of eleven States aims to promote the implementation of national and global commitments and to share best practices to improve the prevention of, and response to, cases of missing persons. To give some concrete examples of recent successes of the GAM:

• Thanks to individual and collective efforts, the members of the alliance played an important role in the adaptation of a resolution on missing persons by the UN General Assembly. The resolution not only includes language reaffirming the need to involve families, but it also contains, for the first time, language acknowledging the needs of missing migrants.
• Following several global thematic expert meetings that were organized through the Global Alliance, four reports and five technical recommendations sets on different topics were published. The aim of these documents is to draw lessons learned from mechanisms worldwide, with clear recommendations for states willing to create or improve their national mechanisms. These guidance documents address for instance the question on how to support families of missing persons and strengthen their role in the search for their loved ones or how to interact with families of missing migrants.
• In September 2021, the 2^nd Global conference of Families of Missing Persons was organized. Over 500 families, representing 35 contexts joined the event to share experiences, learn about their rights, discuss challenges faced in search process and advocate for a better response to their needs. The third edition of the family conference will take place from 22-23 November 2023.
• A Missing Persons Global Response website was created. This platform aims to facilitate knowledge exchange, learning and cooperation amongst practitioners working on the issue of missing persons worldwide. It is a space where existing guidance, standards, research, contacts, learning opportunities and tools on the issue of family separation and missing persons are gathered.

Ha trabajado el Estado/la Sociedad Nacional/la institución con otros asociados para poner en práctica los empeños contenidos en esta resolución?

En asociación con:
Sociedad Nacional de la Cruz Roja o de la Media Luna Roja de su país
gobierno y/o autoridades públicas
CICR/Federación Internacional
otras Sociedades Nacionales de la Cruz Roja y de la Media Luna Roja
asociados en los ámbitos humanitario y de desarrollo (por ejemplo, Naciones Unidas, organizaciones no gubernamentales)
mundo académico

Ejemplos de cooperación:

1. In the frame of the national analysis of the Swiss response to the issue of the missing, separated and dead, several Swiss agencies are working together with the National Red Cross, the ICRC, civil society actors and academia.
2. Within the Global Alliance for the Missing, the eleven member states (Switzerland, Mexico, Argentina, Norway, Kuwait, Peru, Estonia, Azerbaijan, South Corea, Nigeria and Colombia) are working together to:
   • Raise awareness on the question of missing persons globally and regionally, including in its humanitarian and human rights dimensions and develop linkages with peacebuilding, conflict prevention and sustainable development agendas.
   • Promote the implementation of global commitments relating to missing persons, such as UN Security Council Resolution 2474 (2019) on “Missing Persons in Armed Conflict”.
   • Promote collaboration and share best practices, guidance and technical recommendations to improve the prevention of, and response to, cases of missing persons at national, regional and global levels.
   • Ensure the Central Tracing Agency is adequately resourced and equipped to develop guidance, research, and innovative approaches as well as provide advice and support to States and other actors to prevent and respond to the Missing issue.
3. Within the Humanitarian Data Trust initiative, Switzerland, together with the ICRC and OCHA, was working with researchers from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.

¿Ha habido dificultades para poner en práctica los empeños contenidos en esta resolución?

¿Han incidido los empeños contenidos en esta resolución en el trabajo y la dirección del Estado/la Sociedad Nacional/la institución?

Tipo de repercusión:
fortalecimiento de la cooperación entre el gobierno o las autoridades públicas y la Sociedad Nacional
desarrollo y uso de herramientas o metodologías innovadoras
establecimiento o fortalecimiento de asociaciones con otros actores humanitarios
incremento en la movilización de recursos

Describa detalladamente las repercusiones:

The Resolution was instructive for the launch of the Humanitarian Data and Trust Initiative. As a result, a Principled Framework for Responsible Data Sharing between Humanitarian Organizations and Donors was launched. The framework applies to situations where humanitarian organizations share disaggregated data with donors. Several principles for responsible data sharing, that build on already existing guidance for data responsibility, were developed specifically in the frame of humanitarian action.

5. Han incidido los empeños contenidos en esta resolución en las comunidades a las que el Estado/la Sociedad Nacional/la institución presta servicios?

Describa las repercusiones:

Subsequent to the signing of a first pledge by Switzerland in 2018 (Ref. number OP 320001) , a joint working group comprising representatives of Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Federal Police, Disaster Victims Identification Switzerland, State Secretariat for Migration, International Committee of the Red Cross and Swiss Red Cross was created and met for the first time in February 2019. The group committed to the following goals:

1. Clarify key stakeholders and the process for identification and registration of deceased migrants and communication to their families in Switzerland.
2. Develop potential ways of collaboration between relevant authorities and the National Society (Tracing service) to assist families in finding missing or deceased family members.
3. Identify concrete channels of communications with the concerned families regarding the fate of their deceased family members.
4. Develop protocols and gather best practices and tools to support families of deceased migrants across Europe.