Justification
The disappearance of persons is currently one of the principal issues on the human rights agenda in Mexico. The increase in widespread violence resulting from national security policy first implemented in 2006 has produced repercussions that continue into the present day. For almost two decades, expert and forensic medical services have been overwhelmed due to the increase in a variety of crimes and serious human rights violations, resulting in greater amounts of both unidentified and identified, though unclaimed, human remains (Carrillo et al., 2023; Pozos Barcelata, 2020; Rodríguez Carrillo et al., 2023; Schwartz-Marin & Cruz-Santiago, 2018). Although there are no official figures for the quantity of cadavers and fragmented human remains held in custody by the State, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), in 2022 alone, expert and forensic medical services received 130,470 cadavers. Of this total, 34,700 cadavers (37.6%) could not be identified (INEGI, 2023b). This underscores the seriousness of this problem and highlights the urgency with which it needs to be addressed.
Restoring a person´s identity in medical-legal contexts is a complex process that requires the intervention of different disciplines to generate lines of both forensic evidence as well as evidence derived from the investigation process, which must be analyzed and compared with information about both the missing person and the context of their disappearance. The disciplines that provide such lines of evidence include genetics, for the study of DNA, forensic dentistry, for acquiring dental data, and of course, the expertise of Forensic Physical Anthropology, for determining, among other things, the biological profile, which aids in the collection and analysis of biometric data, as well as other sciences and disciplines.
The analysis of anatomical segments with soft tissues or skeletonized bodies to estimate age, sex, height, and other individualizing characteristics, as well as to provide information that contributes to determining cause of death, is a form of expertise in which the mobilization of knowledge of Forensic Physical Anthropology plays a highly relevant role. The estimation of time of death and of postmortem alterations through the lens of forensic taphonomy, the analysis of antemortem lesions that provide information with respect to individualizing features, the analysis of perimortem lesions that address the circumstances of death, and the analysis of bone pathologies that potentially affected the person in life are all guidelines for determining identity and also assist medical professionals in determining the cause, mechanism, and manner of death. These are disciplinary areas in which individuals specializing in Forensic Physical Anthropology will be trained, as proposed by the Forensic Physical Anthropology curriculum.
Despite the relevance of the forensic sciences and disciplines in helping to restore the identity of thousands of deceased persons currently held by the country’s expert and forensic medical services, persons most likely missing from their families and thus causing significant suffering, the educational offerings associated with these sciences and disciplines are scarce. In this regard, and in response to an express request from relatives of missing persons to contribute in addressing this problem, the University of Veracruz created this special program. The university utilized the framework of both its own 2021-2025 Work Program for a Comprehensive Transformation and Plan for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence UV 2023-2031, and was guided by the sense of social responsibility that characterizes the academic institution. The Interdisciplinary Program for the Care and Training of Human Resources Specialized in the Search for Persons and Human Identification in the State of Veracruz aims to assist in addressing the problems surrounding human identification and the disappearance of persons through the training of specialized human resources, one of its substantive functions.
Within the framework of this program, five postgraduate programs will be offered, four of which are in various forensic disciplines. The fifth program will train professionals with a specific psychosocial focus on the care of victims of disappearance. The five postgraduate programs are:
- Specialization in Forensic Physical Anthropology (Faculty of Anthropology, Xalapa Region)
- Specialization in Forensic Archaeology (Faculty of Anthropology, Xalapa Region)
- Specialization in Forensic Dentistry (Faculty of Dentistry, Xalapa Region)
- Specialization in Human Identification Management (Institute of Forensic Medicine, Veracruz Region)
- Specialization in the Psychosocial Perspective in Attending to Victims of the Disappearance of Persons (Faculty of Psychology, Veracruz Region)
Thus, the creation of the present curriculum for the Specialization in Forensic Physical Anthropology forms part of the actions taken by the University of Veracruz to contribute to addressing this problem. This action is undertaken with a sense of social awareness and from a rights-based perspective and will contribute to a culture of substantive peace. The study plans that form part of this program share objectives, goals, references, information, and different aspects related to the justification, academic foundation, and social contribution of the program. The different programs also share the initial training phase, whereas the disciplinary training is specific to each specialization.
The programs will be taught utilizing a mixed modality, with the aim of promoting flexibility and interdisciplinary exchange among students. This is facilitated by the sharing of spaces for the educational experiences pertaining to initial training, which can be taken together among the different specializations that form part of this program. This will also promote exchange and interaction among the different regions of the university.
Pedagogical Principles
The Specialization in Forensic Physical Anthropology has two fundamental pedagogical principles. The first principle focuses on quality training and educational excellence through the active participation of students in experiences that promote metacognition and social awareness. Likewise, as is common in the forensic sciences, an appreciation of the contributions of interdisciplinarity and collaborative learning will be fostered by promoting the exchange of ideas, joint problem solving, and the development of social skills. Said skills include active listening as well as both the communication of findings and the writing of reports in a clear and sensitive manner for different audiences, particularly for those affected by violence.
The second principle is to promote the consolidation of professional ethics, unrestricted respect for human rights, human dignity, posthumous dignity, commitment to truthfulness, ethical handling of information, as well as a strong sense of social and legal responsibility in students, all of which are integral to the exercise of this discipline.
