A good practice guide for the use of forensic genetics applied to human rights and international humanitarian law investigations

Abstract

A consequence of armed conflict and other situations of violence is that individuals go missing; these individuals have often been killed and their remains have not been identified or in some cases may be alive but have been separated from their families and are unable to re-establish family links. Forensic genetics provides a powerful tool for the identification of both the dead and living and can be used to assist in identifying missing persons. Guidelines exist that detail technical aspects of human identification using forensic genetics, particularly when identifying victims of disasters such as plane crashes; however, limited emphasis is given to circumstances often faced by investigations of abuses and violations of international humanitarian and human rights’ law. The Argentine government's Human Rights Division in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship (MREC) proposed that the United Nations (UN) should promote best practices in the use of forensic genetics for this type of investigation; this was adopted in Resolutions A/HRC/RES/10/26 and A/HRC/RES/15/5. Following these resolutions MREC has coordinated, with support from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the drafting of a set of guidelines, with input from several national and international organisations, which it plans to promote through national agencies, international organisations such as South America's MERCOSUR and the UN.