The Right to Recognition before the Law, the Right to Life, the Right to Freedom from Torture and Inhumane and Degrading Treatment, the Right to Information and the Right to Family Life are undeniable. These basic rights are required to be upheld by procedures of the state.
It follows from these rights that:
- Each and every member of every society has the right to have one’s death recorded, investigated and, if appropriate, prosecuted.
- Each family member has the right not to suffer inhumane or torturous treatment in the absence of information about the fate of a loved one, where the state fails to provide a proper investigation or a method of recording relevant data which would, if in existence, remove the agony of uncertainty.
DISCUSSION PAPER: THE LEGAL OBLIGATION TO RECORD CIVILIAN CASUALTIES OF ARMED CONFLICT, p. 16
