Report

The Missing. Action to resolve the problem of people unaccounted for as a result of armed conflict or internal violence and to assist their families. Mourning process and commemoration. Report and recommendations. 04.2002 - 07.2002

ICRC/TheMissing/10.2002/EN/7 (Original: French)
Author
Yvan Droz, Sylvain Froidevaux
Publication Year
2002
Region
Global
Thematic Area
Families
Topic
Religious Aspects / Memorialization / Management of the Dead / Family Needs / Burial Site / Mass Grave
Access
Open access

The study presents a number of sociocultural and religious concepts of death and the meaning of its attendant rites (funeral rites, mourning rites, memorial services). It focuses on situations of armed conflict, internal tension and/or post-conflict periods. It must be emphasized at the outset that death, the status of the dead, post mortem beliefs or eschatological expectations, the possibility of holding a decent funeral, and lastly the conditions in which mourning takes place are the subject of widely varying attitudes and practices.