of exhuming the corpses buried in the mass grave of the South General Cemetery has been
undertaken. As a result of this process, different anthropological and genetic tests have
been performed that, to date, have ruled out the presence of the disappeared victims
among the remains buried in that place, with the exception of the identification of Ana Rosa
Castiblanco in 2001 (supra para. 193). However, the Court takes note of the information
provided by Carlos Bacigalupo who indicated that, “to date, the State has not developed a
genuine search plan, either with regard to the unidentified bodies in the mass grave which
have been ruled out as [belonging to] the disappeared […] or to investigate other places
where, based on the lines of investigation, the disappeared could be.” 747 Although the
victims have been incorporated into the National Plan for the Search for Disappeared
Persons, 748 the Court notes that the information provided by the representatives reveals
that no additional actions have been taken to find them and that the information registered
under this search plan has not been updated, so that Ana Rosa Castiblanco Torres, whose
remains were found and identified in 2001, is still recorded as disappeared.
485. Furthermore, the Court notes that the examinations and tests on the exhumed
corpses were performed in the context of the different criminal proceedings and at the
request of the different judicial authorities. Consequently, the results obtained have been
isolated, partial and incomplete. In this regard, the Court underlines the comment of the
Physical Anthropology Laboratory of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia that “the crosschecking phase has perhaps been the most incomplete phase” of the exhumation process
(supra para. 192). Also, the Superior Court of Bogota indicated that “the procedure to
exhume the corpses in the mass grave in the South Cemetery has not been documented
systematically, which means that the information is fairly fragmented, and prevents
reaching objective conclusions.” 749
486. Consequently, the Court finds that the failure to make a serious, coordinated and
systematic effort to search for the victims constitutes a violation of the access to justice of
their family members.
B.5) Due diligence
487. The Court emphasizes that, to conduct an investigation into enforced disappearance
effectively and with due diligence, 750 all necessary means should be used to carry out
promptly the actions and inquiries that are essential and opportune to clarify the fate of the
victims and to identify those responsible for their forced disappearance. 751 To this end, the
State should provide the corresponding authorities with the necessary logistic and scientific
resources to collect and process the evidence and, in particular, the power to access the
pertinent documentation and information in order to investigate the facts denounced and to
obtain indications or evidence of the whereabouts of the victims. 752
747
Written notes by Carlos Bacigalupo (evidence file, folio 36315).
748
Cf. National Plan for the Search for Disappeared Persons, records corresponding to: Ana Rosa Castiblanco Torres, Bernardo Beltrán Hernández,
Carlos Augusto Rodríguez Vera, Cristina del Pilar Guarín Cortés, David Súspes Celis, Gloria Anzola de Lanao, Gloria Stella Lizarazo Figueroa, Héctor
Jaime Beltrán Fuentes, Irma Franco Pineda, Luz Mary Portela León, Norma Constanza Esguerra Forero and Lucía Amparo Oviedo Bonilla (evidence file,
folios 26130 to 26177).
749
Cf. Judgment of the Criminal Chamber of the Superior Court of Bogota of January 30, 2012 (evidence file, folio
23285).
750
Cf. Article I(b)) of the Inter-American Convention on Forced Disappearance of Persons. See, similarly, Article 12
of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.
751
Cf. Case of Velásquez Rodríguez v. Honduras. Merits. Judgment of July 29, 1988. Series C No. 4, para. 174, and
Case of Osorio Rivera and family members v. Peru. Preliminary objections, merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of
November 26, 2013. Series C No. 274, para. 182.
752
Cf. Case of Tiu Tojin v. Guatemala. Merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of November 26, 2008. Series C No.
253, para. 327, and Case of Osorio Rivera and family members v. Peru. Preliminary objections, merits, reparations
169
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