www.equitas.org.co

Observations regarding funding for the search for missing persons in ColombiaMay 25th, 2009

I. MissionEQUITAS is a victim-centered, evidence-driven, scientific and humanitarian organization, which provides families of disappeared and missing persons in Colombia’s conflict with pro-bono, independent, scientific contributions for the advancement of their cases, as well as psychosocial accompaniment during this process. In addition to its casework, EQUITAS aims to develop relevant research and tools that can enhance official forensic practices, guide public policy, raise social awareness, and promotes the work of victims’ associations, governmental institutions, and non-governmental counterparts involved. EQUITAS acts on lessons obtained from its casework to make contributions far beyond its cases, extracting knowledge to identify best practices, implement new procedures, and create innovative approaches to help the issue of disappeared and missing persons in Colombia.

II. General ObservationsFollowing are key aspects, that in our experience and expertise (mostly in the search, recovery and identification process) need to be funded around the issue of missing persons and forced disappearances in Colombia. These recommendations follow the phases of the National Search Plan and the three main questions it hopes to answer. The purpose of this plan, is to find forcefully disappeared persons alive, or dead.

a. Collecting information on Who is Missing:It is important to guarantee that SIRDEC (the system for missing persons in charge of Legal Medicine Institute) is updated with all the cases of forced disappearances reported to the state entities. According to an April 2009 announcement to the media, the Justice and Peace Unit of the National Prosecutors Office, analyzed all cases reported under three or four state entities and consolidated an initial date base of 49.902 cases. This amount of cases, although perpetrated in a different context, clearly surpass cases in Peru, Guatemala and even Argentina.

Various aspects are important: Guarantee that cases reported in marginal rural areas reach the SIRDEC, through governmental

or non-governmental initiatives. Guarantee that ante-mortem information is collected as complete as possible, but in processes

that do not represent security issues to families (in areas that are in on-going conflict). There should be ways in which family members can confirm their cases are in the system and can follow up on any cross-references. Psychosocial work with families, related to the steps they can take, and what they do not control during the search process of their loved ones, is also a key issue.

Have a reporting system on behalf of rural cemeteries and funeral homes on non-identified bodies that should be included in SIRDEC, for cross-referencing.

Cases recently exhumed by the Exhumations Unit of the Prosecutors Office, or coordinated by the CUVI, should also be reported in the SIRDEC with all individualizing information.

It is important to re-train mayors from rural areas in technical processes related to the crime scenes, as in most of these areas, there are no state entities in charge. Fingerprints, and individualizing characteristics, as well as an organized conservation of bodies in cemeteries, might improve the chances of these being identified in the future.

b. Collecting information on Where they are:The Urgent Search Mechanism (Mecanismo de Búsqueda Urgente-MBU, part of the National Search Plan) as a means to prevent current forced disappearances has not been effective up to date. Forced disappearances continue to occur and prosecutors do not count with effective and immediate ways to search for someone

who has been reported missing. There is no immediate communication system with military battalions, police stations, hospitals, mental clinics, etc, that will react to the search of a missing person, in order to prevent a forced disappearance.

Various aspects are important: There is a need to make forced disappearance as a crime, absolutely visible and grave.

Campaigns on the media and within state entities will help to react immediately before such happenings.

Information is the key to searches of missing persons: good and updated data bases on who is missing, but also, where they can be are key elements. State entities need to develop new lines of evidence on possible burial places and in order to carefully plan total recovery activities in dangerous areas. A team that analyzes information and finds patterns of armed groups who use forced disappearance, might help find and prevent the crime.

It is also important to work with non-governmental organizations and families in methodologies that might help future searches on the field. Testimonial information, maps or geo-referenced mapping, for example.

Exhumation and recovery procedures are especially important for families. They not only have the right to permanent information during the search process, but also have the right to participate in the different search procedures if they want to. This implies close work and communication with them, taking into account their needs before, during and after technical procedures in concrete actions, psychosocial support and funding their participation in them.

Independent observers and witnesses in both field and laboratory processes are key maintain transparency and quality of results for families. Funding this work in cases, is crucial.

Many non-identified bodies reach cemeteries with tissue, but there are no results related to fingerprints identification. It is important to make this a priority in the Registraduria Nacional information system, as they must show results.

c. Answering the question of, What happened?The fact that forced disappearances continue to occur in Colombia, plus an initial official figure of 49.902 cases make it urgent to:

Create a comprehensive public policy to find missing persons and prevent new ones from happening.

Fund long-term, technically sustainable searches on the field, as well as train forensic anthropologists and other disciplines to provide good results in reasonable timeframes. Forensic work should include identification procedures as well as a description of cause and manner of death as well as other indications of torture, extrajudicial execution and other violent acts.

Promote regulations on public cemeteries and funerary homes, in order to inform the SIRDEC on non-identified bodies and follow the right procedures. It is urgent to promote best practices in the management and conservation of non-identified bodies. This regulation would ensure safekeeping of these remains during the period of time before they are retrieved to be returned to families.

Mourning ceremonies that consider organization, logistic and economic aspects according to traditions, beliefs and cultural needs of families should be funded once remains are to be returned to them.

Families need to have free legal representation of their rights related to truth, justice and reparation processes. If not, it is very difficult to obtain any of the three.

There needs to be complete public information on the results of state efforts involved with missing persons, as well as prevention activities.

Some indicators of evaluation, according to the National Search Plan, are:

Phase 1- Collecting information: Number of missing persons reported in all State entities vs. number of persons included

in SIRDEC. Number of cases with complete ante-mortem information, and family contact

information vs total cases in SIRDEC. Number of cases of recent recoveries with complete post-mortem information in SIRDEC.

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Phase 2- Analysis of information: Number of forced disappearances that have been prevented with the MBU. Number of positive, well planned recoveries. Number of field visits against results in recovery, using testimonies of demobilized

persons vs other lines of evidence.

Phase 3- Recovery and identification Number of cases with positive cross-referencing (ante-mortem and postmortem) in

SIRDEC (this will depend on the quality and quantity of information). Number of positive recoveries vs. identification (time involved). Number of persons that enter cemeteries with necropsies and tissue that have been

identified with fingerprints.

Phase 4 – Final disposition of remains Number of non-identified bodies in cemeteries that entered with tissue vs. cases

identified. Number of cases included from cemeteries and funerary homes, that have not gone

through the medical and legal system and need analysis, and new investigations.

False positives influence research of missing persons

EQUITAS believes there are two false positives that are currently being presented by state entities. First, by presenting extrajudicial executions as dead in combat, second, by presenting recoveries of non-identified bodies that could correspond to (dead in combat among paramilitary groups), or forced disappearances as a result in itself. The line between extrajudicial executions and forced disappearances is very fine, as in the first -in many cases- bodies are concealed in order to disappear them, or are presented as dead in combat.

From a technical point of view the massive recovery of remains with no hypothesis on who they are and with no link to the judicial process (as dead in combat, forced disappearances, extrajudicial executions or kidnapped dead in captivity, among others) has produced large amounts of non-identified bodies. This is a methodological problem that is producing a bureaucratic disappearance of the persons recovered, as they are crammed in storages and cemeteries with no clear chain of custody, and proper registration of evidence, and few identifications are reached. It is important to enforce proper investigation of these crimes following the phases of the National Search Plan, guaranteeing proper registration from the field (archaeological method), chain of custody, analysis that includes circumstances related to death (such as torture) and application of all identification methods (not only genetics which is a complementary method).

Also, there is an urgent need to stop exhumations that are not properly investigated and to analyze all remains recovered. It is important to guarantee the documentation and conservation of non-identified bodies in cemeteries and forbid collective graves or ossuaries as many of the missing persons could be there. Finally, if initiatives such as the Unique Identification Center, planned and funded by ICITAP and State Department pretend to industrialize identification processes, it is a priority to demand excellent registration processes and chain of custody that will guarantee correct identifications and documentation of events related to death that will be used in judicial processes, by the main actors of the process: the families of victims. Correct training, background of investigators (in archaeology and forensic anthropology) are a must for any recovery activities, as well as the right indicators of success (not only the body in itself) with the time to produce scientific analysis of each case. (Please see the following link, pro gram in History Channel to understand how exhumations are carried out methodologically to date, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0mCTEnJuw&feature=PlayList&p=264F3FA272B8A0FE&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=2 )

3Photo of a mass ossuary at the Puerto Berrio Cemetery in Antioquia, 2008.