Every August 30, the International Community Observes the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances

Historically, any mention of enforced disappearances has evoked images of clandestine detentions and unacknowledged abductions by shadowy operatives operating with impunity in totalitarian states. In the contemporary era, however, the architecture of erasure has evolved into something far more institutionalized. Across authoritarian regimes and even democracies, state apparatuses frequently achieve the same outcome through formal legal machinery: weaponizing extraordinary counterterror statutes in the name of national security, imposing endless pre-trial detention, and relying on procedural delays to remove dissenting voices from the public sphere.

Nowhere is this tension between extraordinary security legislation and constitutional safeguards more evident than in India’s handling of civil society advocates exposing the most serious human rights violations. The case of Father Stan Swamy, a Jesuit priest who spent his final months in jail under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act before dying of COVID-19 in July 2021, illustrates how legal procedures can be used to silence critics. His detention, based on allegations linked to alleged Maoist activities, drew international condemnation and highlighted the risks faced by those who challenge state narratives.

Yet public pressure, including campaigns by human rights organizations and foreign governments, has occasionally forced authorities to reconsider such cases. In 2022, the Supreme Court of India granted bail to several activists held under the same law, citing prolonged detention without trial as a violation of fundamental rights. These outcomes demonstrate that sustained public attention, combined with legal advocacy, can create openings for justice even in the most restrictive environments. However, the persistence of such practices underscores the need for continued vigilance and collective action to ensure that the promise of due process is not hollowed out by security-driven legislation.