| dc.description.abstract | Mass grave investigations are complex due to the size of the grave, the number of victims, the nature in which they were created, and their often remote or inaccessible locations. Most mass graves are the result of conflict and/or human rights atrocities, despite the implementation of international laws, conflict and the creation of mass graves are still recurrent issues today. In most cases, investigations take place many years after the grave was first created, often, witness statements are the only information available to investigators to suggest the presence of an undiscovered mass grave. However, the passage of time causes the landscape to recover and change reducing the accuracy of witness information. Current methods that are effectively applied to locate single graves are also not necessarily designed to handle large-scale operations; wasting time, resources, and risking potential damage to evidence. This can have major implications for a forensic case, especially if it is to be presented in court. There is a need to find cheaper, more effective and less time-consuming methods that are specifically designed to locate large-scale gravesites, as there are still many mass graves which need to be found.
This research project aimed to determine if the taphonomic signatures commonly found at burial sites have a big enough impact on the subsoil and surrounding landscape to be used as a method of locating archaeological and forensic mass graves. Examining archaeological mass graves alongside their forensic counterparts provided empirical knowledge on how the soil and landscape change over time, to determine which signatures offer the best chances of successfully identifying mass grave locations. Firstly, this project examined victim recovery rates from six countries, the results showed that recovery rates in Iraq are 2%, 3% in Argentina, 8% in Spain, 12% in Colombia, 59% in Cyprus, and 70% in the former Yugoslavia. This low rate of recovery suggests current location and recovery protocols are ineffective. Secondly, legislation, standards and guidance, and policies used to ensure that any gathered evidence is admissible in a court of law were reviewed. However, regulations are complex and vary depending on whether the casework is domestic (carried out in the UK) or international (carried out under the international criminal court), therefore the suitability and admissibility, of the recommended approaches will vary on a jurisdictional basis. Finally, this research critically assessed the physical, stratigraphical and chemical alterations caused by the creation of a mass grave, the subsequent decomposition of the bodies interred within, and the techniques which can detect these changes. It showed that the changes a mass grave causes in the vegetation, stratigraphy, soil phosphorus and pH levels potentially have a long-term impact on both the subsoil and surrounding landscape. Highlighting, they could be used as alternative ways to locate both archaeological and forensic mass graves quicker, faster and cheaper than existing approaches. | en_GB |
