Federal Act of December 18, 2015, relating to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (Enforced) - Purpose

This Act governs the implementation of the International Convention of December 20, 2006, for the protection of all persons from enforced disappearance (Convention).

For the purposes of this law, a person is considered as disappeared if they have been deprived of their liberty by or with the acquiescence of the State, and any information regarding their fate or whereabouts is refused, thus removing them from the protection of the law.

The authorities responsible for the execution of deprivations of liberty shall ensure that official records are kept in which the data enumerated in Art. 17, Para. 3, of the Convention are recorded.

Upon request, they shall promptly communicate this data to the competent coordinating service.

The Confederation shall establish, in close collaboration with the cantons, a network to facilitate the exchange of information in the search for persons suspected of having disappeared.

For this purpose, the Confederation and each canton shall designate a coordination service.

The Federal Council, with the cooperation of the cantons, shall regulate the operation of the network and the processing timeframes.

Individuals who have lost contact with a relative and fear they have disappeared may submit a written request for information to the federal coordination service.

The request must be substantiated. The applicant must specify, in particular, the relationship they have with the missing person and the reasons for suspecting that the person has disappeared.

The federal coordination service initiates a search within the network and, if necessary, with the relevant federal services responsible for carrying out deprivations of liberty, if there are indications to suggest that the person sought is deprived of liberty.

The cantonal coordination services and the federal services competent in matters of execution of deprivations of liberty shall immediately inform the federal coordination service if the person sought is subject to a measure of deprivation of liberty.

If the person sought is subject to a measure of deprivation of liberty, the coordination service of the competent canton or the federal service responsible for execution of deprivations of liberty shall also indicate the location where the person is held and the authority which ordered the deprivation of liberty, as well as the person's state of health.

The federal coordination service decides without delay on the initiation of a search within the network. It may inform the applicant of the decision without issuing a formal decision. If the federal coordination service refuses to initiate a search within the network, the applicant may request a formal decision.

If the search conducted within the network does not enable the location of the person, the federal coordination service informs the author of the request.

If the search conducted within the network reveals that the person sought is deprived of liberty, the federal coordination service indicates to the author of the request the location where the person is and how to contact them; the federal coordination service first requires the express consent of the person sought.

If the person sought does not give their express consent to the transmission of the information, or if the competent criminal authority has decided that the purpose of the investigation prohibits it, in accordance with Art. 214, para. 2, of the Criminal Procedure Code, the federal coordination service informs the author of the request by decision that the person sought has not disappeared and that no further information can be transmitted to them.

Legal remedies are governed by the general provisions on federal procedure.

The Federal Coordination Service shall operate an information system for recording search requests within the network and the information transmitted.

The system shall contain the data listed in Art. 18, para. 1, of the Convention.

The Federal Council shall determine the data catalogue, the data retention period, and data security.Date of entry into force: 1 January 2017