The Story of the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared in Lebanon (CFKDL) from 1982 to the Present

The Story of the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared in Lebanon:

 

On November 24, 1982, hundreds of women marched from in front of the Abdel Nasser Mosque on Al-Mazraa Corniche towards the headquarters of the Council of Ministers, then located in the Sanayeh area of Beirut.
This pivotal moment occurred following a call made by Wadad Halwani on the” Voice of Arab Lebanon” radio station, after she repeatedly heard “There are many like you” during her search for her husband, Adnan, over the previous two months.

Invoking the state of emergency law, the regular security forces stationed near the Lebanese Television building attempted to prevent the march from reaching its destination by using violence.
However, due to the determination and persistence of the women to meet the Prime Minister, a settlement was reached, allowing four women to be chosen to represent them before President Chafik Al Wazzan.
The meeting began in an atmosphere of emotion and solidarity, evident in the President's demeanor and words as he listened to the suffering of each woman. It ended with his lament, "The eye sees, but the hand is short," acknowledging his helplessness in the face of the militias' power.

In a city divided by war into West Beirut and East Beirut, Dar Al-Fatwa became the most suitable place for the women to gather and meet, away from the offices of political parties and warring militias. At Dar Al-Fatwa, the work began on recording the names of the missing, organizing them into lists, and presenting them to all officials during visits organized by the Committee.

Eight years passed, marked by moving demonstrations through the streets of the capital under the fire of war and the dominance of warring factions, demanding the release of all kidnapped and missing persons.
Throughout this period, the families received nothing but promises from the state, along with attempts to obscure their movement and circumvent the issue through the formation of ineffective committees, one after another, without any missing being returned. Yet, the families did not retreat from demanding the return of their loved ones.

On August 26, 1990, the end of the war was declared based on the Taif Agreement.
A year after this agreement, the Parliament issued a law granting amnesty for crimes committed during the period from April 1975 until March 28, 1991.
Faced with the spectacle of self-amnesty and moving forward while turning a blind eye to the war's consequences and tragedies, the families felt abandoned, left outside this flawed peace. They realized that the responsibility to confront the official policy of ignoring the war's outcomes, starting with the issue of the missing, was a societal responsibility, not solely that of the victims' families.

Consequently, the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared in Lebanon began to focus its efforts and raise its voice about the importance of addressing the war's consequences and pushing for societal responsibility in dealing with the issue of the missing.
The committee’s approach was reflected in its follow-up and attendance at most of the activities organized to gather the names of individuals interested in and supporting the cause.
This culminated in the formation of the "Friends of the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared in Lebanon" framework.
This framework adopted the slogan of the Committee of Families, "The Right to Know," and served as the title of the first national campaign supporting the families’ demands:

forming an official committee to investigate and determine the fate of the kidnapped and missing, establishing a social welfare project for the families, declaring April 13 a national day of remembrance and erecting a memorial to honor the victims of the war and clearly condemn its crimes.

Between 2000 and 2005, as a result of campaigns organized by the Families' Committee and supporters of the cause, successive governments formed three investigation bodies with no real powers, which were extended multiple times. These bodies collected information from the families but provided no real or useful information in return.

In 2014, after the families resorted to the judiciary, they were able to obtain a copy of the official investigation file, which acknowledged the existence of mass graves pursuant to a decision issued by the State Shura Council. This decision constituted the first official document enshrining the families' right to know. Achieving this accomplishment required a great deal of work, continuous activism, and national campaigns.

In 2018, the families finally managed to compel the Parliament to pass the "Law on the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared."
The law's passage was the result of a tireless struggle spanning 36 years and three extensive campaigns organized by the committee during the same year (No. 105, dated November 30, 2018). However, the families' committee's journey did not stop with the issuance of the law; rather, the struggle continues to enforce its implementation and ultimately determine the fate of their loved ones, whether alive or dead.

More details about the story of the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared in Lebanon can be found in the file below.