A/HRC/59/49 C. Obstacles to the operational environment for humanitarian actions 66. Insufficient provision of resources for rescue operations at sea and on land, lack of medical assistance and difficulties in obtaining humanitarian visas for family members of disappeared migrants to effectively participate in search and investigation efforts all present obstacles to humanitarian actions. Humanitarian actors and human rights defenders who provide life-saving assistance are also, in many cases, denied access to sites where people have disappeared or are prevented from carrying out their duties independent of political agendas or financial incentives.114 67. Lack of unclear State responsibilities in the conduct of sea rescue operations for boats with migrants, even in acute emergency situations, weak compliance and poor coordination between States reportedly result in the death and disappearance of migrants. For example, despite distress calls from a vessel that disembarked from Senegal carrying 150 migrants, including women and children, in an area within the search and rescue zones along the coasts of Mauritania, Morocco and Spain, no country took responsibility for the rescue. Days later, the boat drifted in Mauritania driven by ocean currents with only 122 survivors. 115 VI. Human rights impact on the families of disappeared migrants 68. Migrant disappearances destabilize communities and have a profound and lasting impact on families, with negative effects on mental health and well-being and long-term impacts on their economic situation, limiting their access to property, inheritance and parental or social welfare rights. 116 Furthermore, family members experience a prolonged state of anguish and sorrow because of lasting uncertainty regarding the fate and whereabouts of the disappeared family member, often exacerbated by the impossibility of accessing the national territory where the disappearance occurred.117 69. Deeply entrenched gender inequalities characterize migration experiences and patterns, including disappearances. Women, who often assume the role of the breadwinner following the disappearance of the family provider, face increased financial and economic hardship, and may be forced to migrate in search of better living conditions.118 Women whose husbands have disappeared are also reportedly subjected to stigmatization and social exclusion.119 Women frequently bear the full burden of searching for their family members abroad, facing the difficulty of understanding complex legal systems without adequate assistance.120 Moreover, the toll on children of disappeared family members is especially severe, causing long-term mental health issues, developmental setbacks and behavioural challenges.121 70. In many cases, there are no State-authorized mechanisms responsible for informing family members of disappeared persons of the disappearance or death of their loved ones. Family members generally learn through social networks, the media or from fellow travellers about the location and/or situation of their relatives. 122 The psychosocial impact of disappearances on families of migrants also stems from the fact that adequate measures leading to effective search and investigation efforts, including criminal investigations, if applicable, to hold perpetrators accountable are systematically denied. In many cases, family members are unable to obtain information from the authorities, complicating their grieving 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 OHCHR, Lethal Disregard, p. 25–26. See submission by Caminando Fronteras. A/HRC/36/39/Add.2, para. 10; see submission by Switzerland. Submission by Ecuador; and A/HRC/36/39/Add.2, para. 10. A/HRC/36/39/Add.2, para. 10. Submission by World Organization against Torture. Submission by Switzerland. International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, “Irregular Migrants”, World Disasters Report (2018), p.149. Submission by La Cimade and others. 15