A/HRC/15/26 words, setting up a databank is only the beginning of a long road in the identification process. The donation of samples should be voluntary and forms explaining the project, its limitations, the restrictions in use of the samples, and confidentiality of the donor, among other clauses, should be provided to donors before their donation of a sample. Databanks should set up standard operating procedures for the collection of samples, and in particular: (a) Control and assessment mechanisms when collecting samples from the target population. In any society there are missing people, but they are not necessarily the ones targeted by the creation of the bank; (b) involved; Controls so that blood or saliva is correctly taken, with no contamination (c) Use of codes or bar codes to protect confidentiality of the victims; (d) Controls for storage and transport that ensure the chain of custody. 37. Databanks should have a board, on which sit not only officials and forensic scientists, but also representatives of associations of relatives of disappeared or missing people. This is critical to guarantee that their concerns are accounted for and to avoid political manipulation or other deviations from the founding principles of the databank. 38. Confidentiality is essential and possible by using bar codes to identify the samples of both relatives and victims. Only the donors of the samples, the board of directors of the databank and the designated official and/or judicial bodies should have access to this information. 39. The plan and limitations of databanks need to be explained to the general public, particularly to relatives of victims, before they donate a blood or saliva sample. External periodic audit of databanks by internationally recognized institutions, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, are recommended. Families of victims also have the right to be informed of the limits of the project. 40. The credibility of the scientists or institutions processing the samples and the custodians of the databank is critical for the success of the project, as trust in State institutions, including forensic systems, have often broken down in human rights cases. 41. The identification process needs a multidisciplinary approach, which starts with the proper recovery and documentation of the remains, and the associated evidence, and their anthropological analysis. Background information on each case and the correct collection of family samples is also crucial. Geneticists work in constant collaboration and exchange of information with anthropologist, archaeologists, and investigators, producing one final multidisciplinary identification report. 42. The International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) for its part has previously been involved in discussions on developing practical guidelines based on its extensive experience in identification efforts on disaster human rights victims. It has, for the purpose of the present report, been in consultation with specialized organizations and prominent individuals in the field of forensic genetics to discuss, inter alia, the potential merits of a United Nations sponsored manual on this matter. These organizations include the DNA Working Group of the European Network of Forensic Science Institutes; the DNA Commission of the International Society for Forensic Genetics (ISFG) that authored the “Recommendations regarding the role of forensic genetics for disaster victim identification (DVI)”; contributors involved in the establishment of the AABB Guidelines for Mass Fatality DNA Identification Operations; representatives of the Missing Persons Committee of the United States Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods; representatives of the Alliance of Forensic Scientists for Human Rights and Humanitarian Investigations; 11

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