The detention of people, often without cause, is a repressive technique which violates fundamental human rights and is often used to spread terror within society.

That is the message connected to the UN’s International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, observed annually on 30 August.

According to the United Nations, a “forced disappearance” qualifies as a crime against humanity and gives victims' families the right to seek reparations.

Siobhán Garside spoke with Rainer Huhle, a member of the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances, about the history behind a convention on the issue adopted in 2006.

Duration: 4'57"