Latin American Initiative for the Identification of the “Disappeared”
Genetics and Human Rights

The Latin American Initiative for the Identification of “Disappeared” people (LIID or ILID in Spanish) focuses on finding a solution for the identification of the remains of thousands of people disappeared in Latin America for political reasons. Genetic projects that processed large amounts of samples were effectively used to bring solace to the thousands of families of victims from the conflict in the Balkans and the attack against the Twin Towers. We believe it is imperative to use these scientific advances in resolving similar problems in other parts of the world, such as Latin America.

LIID currently includes three projects by three Latin American, non governmental organizations that apply forensic sciences, mainly forensic anthropology, to the investigation of human rights violations: the Guatemala Forensic Anthropology Foundation (FAFG), the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team (EAAF) and the Peruvian Forensic Anthropology Team (EPAF). Considering the existence of the common need in the region, it is highly beneficial to establish a Latin American Initiative where experiences are shared, in order to minimize errors and optimize human and financial resources.

In the United States, the Washington Office for Latin America (WOLA) is providing major support to LIID by helping facilitate contacts with donors and policymakers. The organizations that form LIID are profoundly grateful for their assistance.

Memory of the Missing
Through its Memory Project, EPAF collects ante-mortem data from families of the disappeared to preserve the biological and social characteristics of missing persons, as well as the circumstances of their disappearance, death, and clandestine burial. The collection of ante-mortem data is the first step in the correct identification of exhumed, unidentified remains. EPAF uses this data within a comprehensive strategy designed to identify victims of the Peruvian conflict, which also includes the recovery and analysis of remains and the use of DNA testing to complement the identification process.

Putis
Putis is a rural hamlet in the highlands of Southern Peru. According to the Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) report published in 2003, many inhabitants from the regions of Cayramayo, Vizcatánpata, Orccohuasi and Putis were displaced due to the violent acts being carried out by the Shining Path guerrilla group. In December 1984, these displaced persons were resettled at Putis by the military. On December 13, 1984, the military rounded up the community, executed them, and buried them in a mass grave. The TRC estimated 123 victims in the massacre at Putis.

Forensic Intervention
From May to August 2008, EPAF exhumed and analyzed the remains of the mass grave at Putis. A public exhibition of the clothing and personal belongings found in the mass grave was held over a week in August. This event allowed family and friends to identify the belongings of their loved ones, as well as to increase awareness of the massacre at Putis. DNA analyses to identify the remains are in progress.

Visual Documentation
To raise awareness about the massacre at Putis, the Internal Conflict in Peru (1980-2000) and the current human rights situation in Peru, EPAF and its partners have produced a traveling photo exhibit and video documentary entitled Si no vuelvo, búsquenme en Putis — If I don’t come back, look for me in Putis. The exhibit was held in Lima, Peru, and Washington, DC in November 2008 and will be shown in London, England in February, 2009.

The photos are the visual testimony of Domingo Giribaldi and the members of EPAF’s trip to Ayacucho for the public display of the clothing found in the mass grave of Putis, Ayacucho. Over the lapse of a week, more than three hundred people, between family, friends and neighbors of the area, arrived at the exhibition of clothing, organized by EPAF, to support with their testimony and presence the search for their missing ones. Giribaldi’s photographs reveal the desolation, the void and the isolation of a community that, as many others in Peru, has not lost the hope of finding their dead.

The documentary was produced by The Advocacy Project (AP) and follows the Peruvian Forensic Anthropology Team (EPAF) in their efforts at exhuming the graves at Putis this past May. AP Executive Director Iain Guest and AP Peace Fellow Ash Kosiewicz, a graduate student at Georgetown University, accompanied the team and provided footage for the documentary. You can view the documentary at http://advocacynet.org/page/putisfilm

Training and Education Programs
EPAF incorporates an educational component into its work, helping different actors already involved in the search, recovery, and identification process understand the elements of a forensic anthropology investigation and the use of international standards. Educational programs include briefings, conferences and workshops targeting the families of the missing, members of governmental organizations, the greater Human Rights community and the press. These trainings have been held in Peru, Venezuela, and the Philippines. In early 2009, EPAF will hold trainings in Peru as well as in the Philippines.

EPAF also works with aspiring Peruvian students through voluntary internships, public lectures and workshops, and more recently, by teaching two undergraduate courses at the Public University of Ayacucho.

EPAF is involved in the international forensic community as a founding member of the Latin American Association of Forensic Anthropologists (ALAF) and participates in South-South cooperation and exchange of expertise in Colombia, Venezuela, Guatemala, the Philippines, and Bahrain.