«On this International Day, in a spirit of solidarity with all detained staff, let us give the floor to work together to ensure that all United Nations staff can provide assistance to those who need it most, without threatening their safety».
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members is celebrated annually on March 25, the anniversary of the kidnapping of journalist Alec Collett, who worked for the United Nations Middle East Agency and helped Palestine refugees.
Armed bandits attacked Collett and took him to an unknown destination in 1985. Unfortunately, no one else saw the journalist alive. In 2009, the remains of Alec Collett were discovered in Lebanon, in the Bekaa River valley.
The problem of kidnapping has not become less acute over the years. On the contrary, in recent years the number of attacks on United Nations employees who have to work in places of emergency situations, natural disasters, wars, and local conflicts has been increasing.
In 2003, a truck explosion outside the UN office in Baghdad killed 22 staff, including the head of the UN mission in Iraq. In 2007, 42 UN employees were killed in the line of duty, and in 2008, 34 employees of the organization were killed. In January 2010, the UN lost 102 of its staff in an earthquake in Haiti. In 2016, seven UN staff were kidnapped by non-state actors. Fortunately, everyone was eventually released. But more than 20 UN civilian staff remain in custody. Of these, six are being held by the authorities without any explanation as to their arrest.
Therefore, today's date is becoming more and more important every year. It is a day of mobilizing action, demanding justice and strengthening the resolve to protect UN staff and peacekeepers, as well as colleagues representing non-governmental organizations and the media.