- November 4, 2025
On 04.11.2025, The Missing Persons Resource Center organized an information session for family members of missing persons, bringing together representatives of institutions, experts, and families to discuss the latest developments related to the issue of missing persons.
During the session, the representatives of the Government Commission on Missing Persons, the Institute of Forensic Medicine and the Ministry of Justice, discussed ongoing fieldwork, potential new locations and identifications, the rights of victims’ families, and the implementation of the Transitional Justice Strategy.
Key messages from the session included:
-Continued commitment of institutions to clarify the fate of all missing persons, regardless of ethnicity, and to maintain fieldwork despite challenges and limited cooperation from the Serbian side.
-Ongoing excavations at more than 26 locations in 2025, with new potential sites identified through modern technologies such as LiDAR and Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR).
-Persistent challenges in the identification process, including misidentifications from previous years and difficulties in obtaining DNA samples.
-The importance of stronger regional and institutional cooperation, including through the ICRC and neighboring countries.
-Progress on the draft Law on Missing Persons and the need to align it with related legislation to ensure full realization of victims’ rights.
-Reinforcement of the Transitional Justice Strategy’s four pillars – the right to know, the right to justice, the right to reparations, and guarantees of non-recurrence.
-Emphasis on legal, social, and psychological support for families and improved coordination among institutions and NGOs.
-Promotion of peace education and prevention of hatred through new educational materials developed by the Ministry of Education.
-Recognition of the urgent need for accessible psychological support services across municipalities.
The session reaffirmed the collective commitment to truth, justice, and dignity for the families of the missing.
The activity is carried out jointly with the Humanitarian Law Center in Kosovo, with financial support from the European Union Office in Kosovo.
