Using the Minnesota Protocol to Investigate Disappearance Cases

The guidelines on criminal and forensic investigation found in The Minnesota Protocol on the Investigation of Potentially Unlawful Death (2016) (OHCHR 2017) are a source of practical assistance in disappearance cases, establishing ‘a common standard of performance in investigating potentially unlawful death or suspected enforced disappearance’. The Minnesota Protocol offers a set of legal and practical guidelines for governments, institutions and individuals to carry out effective and transparent investigations in cases of death and/or disappearance. This chapter summarises the legal guidelines on the state’s duty to investigate disappearances, and practical guidelines on witness interviews, crime scene investigations, excavation of graves and autopsy procedures. The chapter explains the Protocol’s best practices for investigating cases in which bodies are missing, as well as considerations for dealing with family members in the cases.