Missing persons response: national programs and global cooperation in Brazil’s migration context

Abstract

The search and identification of missing persons represent a pressing global issue with profound humanitarian, legal, and institutional implications. This study presents an illustrative documentary review of MP/UHR identification initiatives in countries selected for their migration-related links to Brazil and their relevance to transnational DNA cooperation (Brazil, Portugal, Spain, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Belgium). Grounded in the United Nations guidelines and using peer-reviewed literature, official reports, and documentation from international organizations, the analysis examine how forensic genetics is integrated into MP/UHR workflows, the legal and governance frameworks that enable or constrain the processing of relatives’ reference profiles, and the operational arrangements that support cross-border exchange. The synthesis indicates that identification outcomes depend not only on laboratory capacity, but also on institutional coordination and the linkage of ante-mortem and post-mortem data. The study also describes international mechanisms such as INTERPOL’s I-Familia database, and humanitarian identification platforms. Although these tools show great potential, their effectiveness is limited due to inconsistent adoption across countries and variations in national protocols. The identification of missing persons must be approached as a shared international responsibility, requiring cooperation in science, law, and policy to ensure dignity, truth, and justice for families of the missing.