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The exhumation of one of the two mass graves located in the municipal cemetery of Campillos in Malaga province in July 2024 will begin before the summer, as confirmed by the town hall.
This intervention is part of the State Exhumation Plan promoted by the Secretary of State for Democratic Memory and has a budget of 30,000 euros. The work will be carried out over the next few months and is expected to be completed in September. In this first phase, work will be carried out on just one of the graves, although the project is expected to continue next year with a second phase, provided that additional funding is available.
The project is part of a collaboration agreement signed between the Junta de Andalucía and the University of Malaga (UMA) and also includes an educational dimension. The UMA is studying the possibility of involving students studying History and Master's Degrees in Ancient Historical and Literary Heritage as part of their training in forensic archaeology. "We think it is very positive that this project also has an educational component, allowing young people to approach this part of history from a direct and respectful experience," explained the mayor of Campillos, Daniel Gómez.
The dimensions of the graves are similar: approximately 15 metres long by two metres wide. It is estimated that they house the remains of more than a hundred people, based on the superimposition of bodies and evidence of violent deaths, some with bullet impacts. The intervention will be carried out by the same team of specialists who located the graves in the summer of 2024.
Last September, DNA samples were taken from relatives of the possible victims in order to facilitate the identification of the remains. "We made a public appeal to the public and the response was enormous. Between 80 and 100 swabs were taken. In addition, we also received requests from people who live abroad and have ancestry in Campillos, to whom we sent the genetic identification kits," the mayor explained. These samples will make it possible to compare the remains found with the genetic profiles stored both locally and in national databases.
Gómez has acknowledged that identifying all the victims will be difficult, especially as many of the immediate family members are already deceased. However, he is hopeful about the results. "We know it is a complex process, but we are being very rigorous and we have the advice of top professionals. Our wish is that the majority of families will be able to recover the remains of their loved ones and give them a dignified burial. It is an act of justice, humanity and memory", he said.
Collaboration with the UMA is a key factor in the development of the project. Professors María José Berlanga Palomo, from the Department of Historical Sciences, and Encarnación Barranquero Texeira, from the Department of Modern and Contemporary History, are responsible for the academic coordination.
"Working with them is very easy. They are magnificent professionals and have given us all their experience and support. The interest they have shown in the educational aspect of this project demonstrates their commitment to historical memory and education," said Gómez.
The mayor added, "From the beginning we have defended that the main objective is the dignity of these people. It is of human quality that the families have closure on a period of mourning that has been open for many decades. This is a wound in the history of our town, and we are finally taking steps to heal it."
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