331. This Court has established that the right of the victims’ next of kin to know the
whereabouts of the remains of their loved ones constitutes, in addition to a requirement of the
right to know the truth, a measure of reparation and, therefore, gives rise to a correlated
obligation of the State to meet this fair expectation. In addition, for the next of kin, it is very
important to receive the bodies of those who died in the massacre, because it allows them to
bury them in accordance with their beliefs, as well as to close the process of mourning that they
have endured all these years.501 In the words of expert witness Yáñez de la Cruz, “certain
cultural and social rituals contribute to the mourning process through practices such as the
wake, the burial, consolation, all the actions that confirm that the loved will not return”; and
these rituals could not be performed with regard to the massacres of El Mozote and nearby
places.502 It is also worth underlining that the remains can provide useful information to clarify
the facts, because they provide details of the treatment that the victims received, the way in
which they were executed, and the modus operandi. Similarly, the place where the remains are
found may provide valuable information on the perpetrators or the institution to which they
belonged.503
332. The Court considers that, within six months of notification of this Judgment, the State
must collect the available information on possible interment or burial sites, which must be
protected in order to preserve them so that, following up on the work already undertaken by the
Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team, any other action that is necessary in order to exhume
and identify other individuals who were executed is initiated systematically and rigorously, with
adequate human and financial resources.504 To this end, the State must use all necessary
technical and scientific means, taking into account the pertinent national and international
standards505 and must endeavor to complete all the exhumations within two years of notification
of this Judgment. In this regard, the Court considers that the informed consent of the victims’
families and coordination with them through their representatives is a fundamental element of
this process.506
333. If the remains are identified, they must be delivered to the next of kin, after a genetic
corroboration of relationship or testing using adequate and suitable methods, as appropriate, as
soon as possible and at no cost to the next of kin. The State must also cover the expenses for
transportation and burial in accordance with the beliefs of their family.507 Should the remains not
be identified or claimed by any next of kin, the State must bury them individually in an
acceptable cemetery or place that is known to the communities that were victims of the
massacres. A specific identifiable area in this place shall be reserved for their burial with the
indication that these are individuals who have not been identified or claimed who died in the
massacres of El Mozote and nearby places, with information on the place where the remains
were found.
334.
To ensure that the individualization of those exhumed is effective and viable, this Court
501
Cf. Case of the Las Dos Erres Massacre v. Guatemala, para. 245.
502
Cf. Expert opinion on psychosocial impacts and recommendations for reparations in the case of “The Massacres
of El Mozote and nearby places” provided by María Sol Yáñez De La Cruz, undated (evidence file, tome XVIII, annex 2 to
the final written arguments of the representatives, folio 10550).
503
Cf. Case of the Las Dos Erres Massacre v. Guatemala, para. 245.
504
Cf. Joint expert opinion provided by affidavit by Luis Fondebrider, Mercedes C. Doretti and Silvana Turner on
April 18, 2012 (evidence file, tome XVII, affidavits, folios 10313 and 10322).
505
Such as those established in the United Nations Manual on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of ExtraLegal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions.
506
Cf. Joint expert opinion provided by affidavit by Luis Fondebrider, Mercedes C. Doretti and Silvana Turner on
April 18, 2012 (evidence file, tome XVII, affidavits, folio 10318), and Expert opinion on psychosocial impacts and
recommendations for reparations in the case of “The Massacres of El Mozote and nearby places” provided by María Sol
Yáñez De La Cruz, undated (evidence file, tome XVIII, annex 2 to the final written arguments of the representatives,
folio 10559).
507
Cf. Case of the Las Dos Erres Massacre v. Guatemala, para. 248.
107
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