according to the definition of the Declaration for the Protection of All Persons against Enforced Disappearances, adopted in 1992, enforced disappearances occur when persons are arrested, detained or abducted against their will or otherwise deprived of their liberty by officials of different branches or levels of Government or by organized groups or private individuals acting on behalf of, or with the support, direct or indirect, consent or acquiescence of the government, followed by a refusal to disclose the fate or whereabouts of the persons concerned or a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of their liberty, which places such persons outside the protection of the law. The declaration also, has affirmed the connection between enforced disappearances and crimes against humanity. In Article 5 of the 2006 International Convention on the Protection of All Persons against Enforced Disappearances states that: "The widespread or systematic practice of enforced disappearance constitutes a crime against humanity as defined in applicable international law and shall attract the consequences provided for under such applicable international law.”
