Mapping the intangible: forensic human rights documentation in post-conflict Uganda

Practical approaches and standardisation of forensic human rights anthropology have been central areas of debate since the origin of the field in 1980s Argentina. However, post-conflict investigations challenge this current focus on standardisation due to the diversity of sociocultural contexts and a demand for culturally informed methodologies. Through a collaborative research project in northern Uganda, a team of anthropologists have addressed some of these issues in a context where spiritual disturbances associated with human remains from the recent war generate ongoing negative effects for Acholi survivors. Here, one facet of this longitudinal project is presented – forensic site surveys, their impact on collaboration with survivors, and their application to sociocultural, rather than traditional forensic, needs and international rights. The methodology presented here introduces a way to incorporate emic prerogatives by treating intangible effects of human remains as imperative to the medico-legal context and the site map. In conclusion, this methodology may offer a way to overcome western-centric human rights approaches while allowing local communities to further define what features are integral to the ‘forensic’ documentation process; tangible or intangible.