Forensic investigation, truth and trust in the context of transitional justice in Brazil

Abstract

Exhumation may be defined as the legally sanctioned excavation and recovery of the remains of lawfully buried or -occasionally -cremated individuals, as distinct from forensic excavations of clandestinely buried remains conducted as part of a criminal investigation and from unlawful disinterment of human remains, commonly referred to as 'bodysnatching'. The aim of this article is to review the role of exhumation -so defined -in the activities of CEMEL, the Medico-Legal Centre of the Ribeirão Preto Medical School-University of São Paulo, in international, regional and local collaborations. Exhumations form part of routine forensic anthropology casework; scientific research in physical and forensic anthropology; and forensic casework conducted in collaboration with the Brazilian Federal Police; and are carried out as part of humanitarian investigations into deaths associated with the civil-military dictatorship of 1964 to 1985. This article aims to offer a non-technical summary -with reference to international comparative information -of the role of exhumation in investigative and scientific work and to discuss developments in their historical and political context.

Procedural and political aspects of forensic exhumation in Brazil

“…Other social and scientific aspects of this work are discussed in detail in Guimarães et al, 47 with critical reference to the role of forensic investigations in transitional justice. Further investigations and exhumations in relation to the civil-military dictatorship require a fundamental commitment to, and plan for, concerted action and the establishment of an independent body that can monitor and ensure progress and respond to the demands of victims' families.…”

Validation of a standard forensic anthropology examination protocol by measurement of applicability and reliability on exhumed and archive samples of known biological attribution

“…Brazil is an example of a region where forensic anthropology is a relatively nascent discipline (8,9), principally as a consequence of its emergence from the state control of forensic science, which was imposed during the military governments of 1964-1985. It is applied in routine criminal and civil investigations (10)(11)(12), as well as in inquiries relating to alleged human rights abuses that occurred during the dictatorship (13,14). Like many contemporary populations, the Brazilian population is demographically complex, resulting from migration and intermarriage arising from Native American, African, European, Middle Eastern and-more recently-Japanese settlement, which has considerable historic and prehistoric time depth, and varies substantially by region (15)(16)(17).…”