OMPF Cycle of Activities

Definition of the Missing

A person is considered missing when their fate and whereabouts are unknown to his or her family as a result of conflict. This includes multi-ethnic victims of “enforced disappearances”, extra-judicial killings or massacres, whose remains have been concealed with the intention of destroying evidence. There are different definitions of what constitutes “an enforced disappearance”. The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) defines disappearances in the following terms:

"Enforced disappearance of persons" means the arrest, detention or abduction of persons by, or with the authorization, support or acquiescence of, a State or a political organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge that deprivation of freedom or to give information on the fate or whereabouts of those persons, with the intention of removing them from the protection of the law for a prolonged period of time”.

The truth about these disappearances often remains unknown to relatives, friends and authorities. A large number of families, often extended groups of people are affected which results in a tremendous impact on the population. Disappearances did not end with the signature of the Kumanovo Agreement in Kosovo (June 1999). A number of persons from all communities but especially non-Kosovo Albanians, also disappeared after the conflict but for reasons linked to it. These persons fall under the OMPF mandate.

Hidden Detention Centres and Extortion

The most important matter for families to establish is whether the disappeared are alive or dead. Typical of post-conflict situations, many in Kosovo, Serbia proper and Montenegro believe that relatives who vanished from their homes or were taken by force, are being kept alive years after their disappearance.

Evidence so far does not prove such hope but instead supports the opposite view. Most of the disappeared were killed shortly or some time after their detention. Even though information available proves negative on investigation, the search for possible hidden detention sites continues. Lack of positive evidence that people are alive and kept against their will, almost inevitably feeds some families’ belief that OMPF keeps information hidden about the truth of a missing person’s location and fate. This level of false hope is a phenomenon also evident in other parts of the world, where lack of information leads to the creation of myths about the disappeared.

As part of an initiative to de-construct myths of the missing, and to achieve closure for the families based on factual evidence, OMPF has compiled data which accurately reflects the number of missing persons in Kosovo and Serbia proper.

The Consolidated List of Missing Persons contains information combined from a number of sources, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and family associations. This collaborative effort facilitates early agreement on the number of missing persons, enabling cases to be solved more methodically.

Rumours perpetuate regarding hidden detention centres in Kosovo and Serbia proper, adding another complex dimension to the issue of missing persons. OMPF is aware of cases where extortionists try to make money from the families’ desperation. For example, a person would call an affected family and say ‘if you give me €2,000, you will be able to speak with your relative for a minute over the phone’.

Usually families find a way to pay, and of course their relative never calls. It is difficult to identify these extortionists due to the families’ hope that they may still find their relatives alive. They tend not to contact the police in the belief that they are protecting the safety of their loved ones. OMPF encourages families exposed to such situations to report their case to the police. All information received about hidden detention centres has been so far proved negative on investigation.

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OMPF/MPU Cycle

Investigation
The OMPF/MPU team in cooperation with KFOR and other organisations, investigates information regarding either the possible location of missing persons and/or potential gravesites. The Central Criminal Investigation Unit (CCIU) handles the criminal aspects of cases relating to missing persons.

Exhumation
The teams present during an exhumation include forensic archeologists and/or anthropologists, as well as police officers from MPU. UNMIK has the jurisdiction to exhume in Kosovo but does not have the jurisdiction to exhume or investigate in Serbia proper, Montenegro or any other country. It is illegal to exhume a body without a court order.

Autopsy
The purpose of an autopsy is to determine cause of death and the identity of the victim whenever possible.

OMPF experts conduct autopsies at the Rahovec/Orahovac mortuary facility. A typical autopsy team includes: forensic doctors (both international and local), forensic anthropologists, forensic dentist, forensic photographer, and a scene of crime officer.

Identification
Ante-mortem information is compiled from data provided by relatives of a missing person. This includes the medical, dental and biological details of the victim, as well as details about clothes worn at the time of disappearance. Post-mortem data is collected during the autopsy of the alleged missing person. Ante and post-mortem data is then compared to enable identification, which is the responsibility of the MPU identification team.

Traditional identification methods enable us to prepare presumptive positive identifications corroborated by DNA testing. In which case a sample from a bone or a tooth from a body (the alleged missing person) is matched against the blood samples of his/her relatives. The International Commission of Missing Persons (ICMP) undertakes DNA testing. If the comparison is positive the identification is considered positive and a death certificate is issued.

Outreach Pristina and Belgrade
Once identification is positive, close relatives of the missing persons(s) are informed through family visits. The MPU identification officer in charge of the case has the responsibility to break the news to relatives. OMPF is also present during the visit to arrange practical matters such as handover of the mortal remains and to organise reburial arrangements. The Outreach/MPU teams have received specific training in order to deal with this task.

Handover and Re-burial
Handover of mortal remains usually takes place at the OMPF mortuary in Rahovec/Orahovac or at Merdare (Gate 3) for cross-boundary transfer. A family member must be present to sign documents and receive the medical death certificate, identification certificate and a confirmation of identity through DNA (if applicable).

Clothing and personal effects are kept with the mortal remains in the coffin. Family members are advised not to view the mortal remains, depending on their condition to avoid further trauma, although they always retain the right to do so as this can enable family members to achieve closure.

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Death Certificates, Cause and Time of Death

The determination of cause of death is based on scientifically proven facts recorded during autopsy on the human remains. The nature of those facts is such to have contributed to the death of the victim. Therefore, incomplete remains or those damaged by fire, scavengers or other factors may not allow the forensic doctor to ascertain cause of death, hence cause of death may remain unascertained (i.e. the available evidence does not allow an expert to ascertain how death took place).

Cause of death “unascertained” is not the same thing as “unknown”. It means that if there was more evidence, cause of death could be ascertained. Therefore, the determination of cause of death is the doctor’s prerogative and cannot be influenced by the family or even witness statements explaining how the person was killed. The best example is a scenario where somebody was seen being shot through the abdomen. Once the body is found, only bones remain and the bullet damaged none of them. Despite the witness information, the doctor would not be able to prove or ascertain death based on the available evidence.

As with cause of death and contrary to popular belief, time of death cannot be determined with precision after so many years. On most death certificates, this is noted as “prior to date of exhumation”. There is usually a broad gap between the time a person disappeared and the time he/she was exhumed and there is no way of determining when and where a person died. A person may have been kept alive for some time after their disappearance and therefore the date of disappearance cannot be considered as the time of death.

Clothing Exhibitions

Family members of missing persons are invited to view clothing and personal effects found on unidentified bodies presumed to be those of alleged missing persons. This event assist in the identification process by triggering leads that are then followed by a detailed process (ante-mortem/post-mortem comparison) described above.

Transfers from Serbia Proper to Kosovo

A large number of Kosovo Albanians who disappeared in Kosovo were subsequently found in mass graves in Serbia proper. Almost 1,000 bodies have been exhumed in Serbia proper and are in the process of being identified through DNA. So far 67 mortal remains from mass graves sites in Batajnica and Petrovo Selo have been transferred to Kosovo.

The remains are taken for forensic inspections, which take place in Kosovo according to the Protocols signed between UNMIK and the Centre for Coordination for Kosovo and Metohija. Once the inspections are complete, the remains are ready for release to the families. The processes of family visits, handover of mortal remains and reburial then takes place.

Transfers from Kosovo to Serbia Proper

A number of non-Kosovo Albanians disappeared during or in the aftermath of the conflict. Their families fled Kosovo mainly to Serbia and Montenegro and the mortal remains of their loved ones continue to be exhumed in Kosovo. Once identified, the remains of these victims of the conflict and its aftermath are ready to be transferred.

The mortal remains of missing persons from Serbia are being exhumed in Kosovo. After identification, the OMPF office in Belgrade informs the families if they live in Serbia proper or Montenegro. Forensic inspections are performed by Serbian forensic experts according to the terms of the Protocols signed between UNMIK and the Centre for Coordination for Kosovo and Metohija. The handover of mortal remains and associated paperwork takes place with the families at the Merdare Gate 3 boundary crossing. Reburial ceremonies are taken care of by the affected families.

Mass, Multiple and Single Graves

A single grave is an individual burial site containing the mortal remains of one person. Both mass and multiple graves contain the remains of more than one individual.

The difference between mass and multiple graves is the respect paid to the dead in the burial process and the subsequent possibility of being able to locate an individual's remains, should exhumation be necessary.

Typically, a mass grave is a large burial site where mortal remains have been dumped randomly. The bodies lie in the position in which they have fallen, often twisted or prone, and overlapping each other. There are no grave markings indicating the site and the identities of the bodies are not recorded. It is impossible to locate an individual’s remains in this kind of site.

A family tomb is an example of a multiple grave. Typically, many people are buried in the same location, usually in a coffin. The bodies have been treated with dignity and buried respecting local traditions. The names of family members are recorded on a tomb marker or monument at the site.

A borderline example of a multiple grave is where multiple remains are buried in a trench. Usually bodies buried in a multiple grave are positioned parallel to each other and do not overlap. Grave markers above ground indicate the approximate location of mortal remains.

Gravesites should be defined according to their legitimacy; whether they have been made legally or illegally. Mass, multiple or single graves may be dug to dispose of evidence as well as for legitimate reasons. Exceptional circumstances should also be taken into consideration. For example, military units may bury casualties in multiple graves for own security in the aftermath of shelling. It is also common for locals to bury the dead similarly in the aftermath of conflict, in order to avert risks to their health.

Suhareka/Suva Reka Temporary Holding Facility

This site contains unidentified remains and is not a mass grave. OMPF has detailed information on the mortal remains interred at Suhareka/Suva Reka: ranging from full autopsy data, digital photos of clothing and other artifacts as well as DNA samples from all the associated mortal remains.

Each case is stored in a marked individual grave, in order to expedite the handovers to the affected families, once the identification process is complete. The first group of remains were buried by ICTY in 2000, and the site has now expanded to accommodate remains exhumed by OMPF. Currently, there are approximately 454 mortal remains, a number that fluctuates according to cases, which are identified and re-exhumed accordingly.