30 August 2021: On the occasion of the International Day of the Disappeared, ICMP, with UK support, has published a Q&A topical guide for families of the missing in the Western Balkans. The guide Resolving the Missing Persons Issue in the Western Balkans is available in all languages of the Western Balkans countries in a reader-friendly format.

The guide explains practices and principles applied in the countries of the former Yugoslavia in their efforts to account for persons missing as a result of the 1990s conflict. It is the product of many years of first-hand experience on the part of ICMP staff, and intensive communication with families of the missing, scientists, scholars, researchers and professionals from domestic institutions.

The purpose of the Guide is to provide accurate information to families of the missing and the citizens. It details processes that involve numerous institutions in the fields of justice, internal and foreign affairs, law enforcement, and specialized support institutions, as well as the families of the missing. It also addresses domestic and international legal instruments that underpin these efforts.

Reporting missing person and reporting potential locations of clandestine graves using ICMP’s Online Inquiry Centre is explained in easy to understand way with a step by step guide.

The Guide also includes a Question and Answer section to present in concise format clarifications on numerous topics that have been of concern to families of the missing, researchers, scholars and practitioners. The Questions and Answers section also provides country-specific information for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia.

See below the video message sent by British Ambassador Matt Field, Head of ICMP’s Western Balkans Program, Matthew Holliday and Chairperson of Regional Coordination of Families of the Missing from the Former Yugoslavia, Semina Alekic sent on this occasion.