Communication No. 181/1984 Submitted by: Elcida Arévalo Pérez on behalf of her disappeared sons, Alfredo Ráfael and Samuel Humberto Sanjuan Arévalo Alleged victim: Alfredo Ráfael and Samuel Humberto Sanjuan Arévalo State party: Colombia Date of adoption of views: 3 November 1989 (thirty-seventh session)* Subject matter: State party's failure to investigate the disappearance of the victim's sons Procedural issues: State party's duty to investigate Adoption of views without submission on merits by State party Article 4 (2) Substantive issues: Effective remedy Right to life General comment on Article 6 (16) Articles of the Covenant: 2, 6, 7, 9 and 10 Articles of the Optional Protocol: Article of the Optional Protocol: 4 (2), 5 (2) (b) __________ * The text of an individual opinion submitted by Mr. Nisuke Ando is reproduced in the appendix. 1. The author of the communication (initial letter dated 17 September 1984 and subsequent corre-spondence) is Elcida Arévalo Pérez, a Colombian national residing in Colombia, writing on behalf of her sons, Alfredo Ráfael and Samuel Humberto Sanjuán Arévalo, who disappeared in Colombia on 8 March 1982. 2.1 The author states that Alfredo Ráfael (born on 7 October 19471, a student of engineering at the District University of Bogotá, left the family home in Bogotá, on 8 March 1982 at 8 a. m., with the intention of going to the university and that Samuel Humberto (born on 25 March 1959), a student of anthropology at the National University of Colombia, left their home on the same day at 3 p. m. for the purpose of attending to a job offer. They did not return and their whereabouts have been unknown ever since. The author further states that on the same day she was told by neighbours that their home had been watched by armed individuals carrying walkie-talkies, that these men 125