Forensic Anthropology and Human Rights: Somaliland Field School

Horndiplomat-Somaliland was a part of the former of Somali Republic . For 25 years until his fall, the regime of Mohammed Siad Barre carried out massacres against the people of Somaliland. About 60,000 civilians were killed, thousands were victims of enforced disappearance, and 500,000 individuals were displaced before the declaration of independence, in 1991. Since its independence, Somaliland has managed to secure the political stability, economic and social development needed to investigate the atrocities committed in the past (through a War Crimes Investigation Commission made up of 6 members). The forensic field school in Hargeisa will help to determine the universe of missing people through a systematic approach of collecting and combining of ante mortem data and research of mass and clandestine graves.

COURSE OBJECTIVE
In this 4-weeks long field school, the participants will attend virtual and in situ workshops on the culture, society, religion and post-conflict issues of Somaliland. The field school will assist in training the staff of the War Crimes Investigation Commission of Somaliland in forensic investigation of human rights violations. At the completion of the course, the participants will have an understanding of the application of forensic sciences to the investigation of Human Rights violations, as well as the process involved in the examination, recovery and analysis of mass graves and their contents. As a norm students will spend two weeks working in the exhumation process and two weeks in the laboratory.

The Peruvian Forensic Anthropology Team (EPAF) is a non-profit organization that promotes the right to truth, justice, and guarantees of non-repetition in cases of forced disappearance and extrajudicial execution. EPAF seeks to contribute to the consolidation of peace and democracy where grave human rights violations have taken place by working alongside the families of the disappeared to find their loved ones, gain access to justice, and improve the conditions affecting their political and economic development. To achieve these goals, EPAF works in four principal areas: Forensic Investigation, Historical Memory, Forensic Training, Human Development.

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