Text by Jennifer Manongdo
Photos by Angelou Mendoza 

Dr. Richard Bassed, Deputy Director and Head, Academic Programs of the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine and Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine of Monash University, discussed the process of implementing a disaster victim identification system.

The University of the Philippines Manila will begin offering its Forensic Medicine Master’s Program in the next academic year, focusing on a systematic approach to victim identification during disasters. 

Experts from Australia’s Monash University and UP Manila’s college of medicine jointly developed the curriculum for the new master’s program after signing a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) in October 2024. The new postgraduate degree integrates existing forensic medicine courses from Monash University that were tailored to the Philippine context to address the country’s distinct forensic challenges. It is set to begin in August 2025.

“We’re conducting the training here in the Philippines and we’ll be sending forensic doctors from Australia and other countries around the world,” Dr. Richard Bassed, Deputy Director and Head of the Academic Programs of the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine and Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine of Monash University said in a recent press briefing before a symposium on forensic medicine on March 7, 2025 at the College of Medicine at UP Manila. 

“We’ll spend a month at a time here supervising and training the students as they go through the master’s program…and this program will deliver that to the Filipino doctors for the Philippine society in the hope that we can generate a death investigation pathway or system that provides independent and evidence-based reports and testimony to courts for the satisfaction of justice,” Dr. Bassed added. 

Dr. Stephen Cordner, Professor Emeritus of the Department of Forensic Medicine of Monash University emphasized how forensic medicine could improve the country’s justice system and public safety by enhancing death investigations through accurate identification and evaluation of persons supposedly involved in crimes. 

Dr. Stephen Cordner, Professor Emeritus of the Department of Forensic Medicine at Monash University emphasized the vital role of Forensic Pathology in society.

There are only two trained forensic psychologists in the country, Dr. Raquel Fortun and Dr. Cecilia Lim, with the former set to retire next year. The new postgraduate training assures the availability of experts that can help in disaster operations, particularly in identification of bodies and in conducting criminal investigations.

Dr. Fortun considers the upcoming course as an important milestone not just for UP Manila but for the justice system in the country. 

“Once upon a time, we gave the Forensic Science Institute a move…but it never really took off,” she said. “The stars have aligned. Now, we have support from the Office of the President.

On January 22, 2025, President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. signed an administrative order creating a technical working group for the establishment of a National Forensics Institute, with experts from UP Manila playing a key role. This initiative underscores the government’s recognition of the crucial role forensic medicine plays in the country’s justice system and public health. 

“Years from now, when the impact of a strong, science-based forensic system is felt by families affected by mass casualty disasters, by victims seeking justice, or when the wrongly-accused is cleared, we will look back and remember that it all began when UP and Monash University dared to push the boundaries of forensic science,” UP Manila Chancellor Michael Tee said. “This is the time when the Philippines and Australia stood together, proving that the vast ocean between us is no barrier to a shared mission for truth and justice.”#

HK Yu, Australian Ambassador to the Philippines, said the partnership between Monash University and the University of the Philippines Manila is the most significant contribution of her administration in strengthening the bilateral relations between the two countries. 

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