The MaGPIE team acknowledges Aboriginal peoples of the distinct traditional lands and language groups of Western Australia as the Traditional Owners of the land upon which this research is based. We pay respect to Elders past and present and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are warned…
IOM’s Missing Migrants Project (MMP) captured more than 63,000 deaths or disappearances during migration from 2014 to 2023, while its recent report denoted in multiple circumstances that the recorded numbers were most certainly an undercount of the true numbers.[1] A decade ago, Reineke and Martínez observed that ‘the invisibility of migrant deaths relates to the…
As the first annual report with facts and figures on progress, publication and plans is written and submitted to the steering group for scrutiny, this blog is more of a personal reflection on the past 12 months. An ode, in pictures, to the MaGPIE team and its journey … MaGPIE was conceived…
At Bournemouth University, the MaGPIE team is supported by an industry-led steering group that plays a crucial role in ensuring its research is both relevant and of the highest quality. These experts collaborate with the team to keep the research aligned with its core objectives, ensuring that the project’s goals are clearly defined, met, and…
Mapping projects related to mass atrocities and human rights violations are prevalent across the globe. Despite their often well-intentioned origins, there has been minimal practical research and subsequent output focused on what constitutes effective mapping. Furthermore, there is a lack of guidance on how to balance the pursuit of justice with the need to…
MaGPIE’s mass grave mapping comprises multiple steps; searching for and categorising mass graves, deciphering the relevant treaties, laws, and institutions each State uses to address them, investigating the best forensic investigation practices, and determining how justice can be achieved for the victims, families and affected communities. Dr Ellie Smith focuses on the latter aspect—achieving…
Between 22nd – 24th May 2024 members of the MaGPIE team paid a visit to the International Commission on Missing Persons headquarters in The Hague. Melanie has been working successfully with the ICMP, particularly Andreas Kleiser, for a number of years in conjunction with the Missing Persons Indicator Project, a project closely associated with MaGPIE, that…
“I have two bones of my son. That’s all I had to bury … perhaps we can find more of the missing men here.” In October 2015, Munira Subaric and Kada Hotic of the Association of Women of Srebrenica and Zepa, stood at a rubbish dump on the bank of the river Drina outside the…
From 21st to 28th April three members of the MaGPIE team, Dr Melanie Klinkner, Dr Ellie Smith and Diego Renato-Nunez, visited Guatemala to gain insight into the country’s ongoing efforts in protecting, investigating, commemorating and memorialising mass graves borne from the nation’s 36-year civil war. During their visit a landmark genocide trial of former general…