Reforming Abusive Security Systems

Preventing the recurrence of human rights violations to promote social reconstruction and the rule of law is a key objective of transitional justice. Police, military, and other security agencies, governance systems of these institutions, as well as nonstate security actors such as armed rebel groups, are often the most responsible for serious and systemic human rights violations. Reforming abusive security systems to prevent recurrence and provide effective and accountable security to communities is, therefore, of central concern to TJ advocates.

A justice-sensitive approach to security system reform (SSR) applies transitional justice expertise to deal with legacies of massive and serious abuse and maintains that four dimensions of reform are particularly relevant to transform abusive security systems:

• Building the institutional integrity of the security sector to discourage abuses and increase its responsiveness;

• Promoting the legitimacy of the security sector to overcome the fundamental crisis of trust characteristic of a situation marked by a legacy of serious abuse;

• Empowering all citizens, but especially victims of oppression and violence and other marginalized groups; and

• Enhancing coherence with other transitional justice approaches such as criminal prosecutions, truth-telling, and reparations, to increase the effectiveness of each of these measures.

In recent years the ICTJ has established itself as a leading international organization working on one aspect of a justice-sensitive SSR, the vetting of security agencies in transitional settings. The ICTJ assisted the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to issue a Rule-of-Law Tool on Vetting in 2006; in 2007 it published the edited volume, Justice as Prevention: Vetting Public Employees in Transitional Societies, which presents the results of a comparative and comprehensive multiyear research project examining vetting processes in countries emerging from armed conflict and authoritarianism. Justice as Prevention includes studies of past experience with vetting in nine countries and four thematic chapters. Vetting will remain a program priority for the ICTJ, and the Center will continue to advise the UN and governments on the establishment of vetting mechanisms in the transitional context. The ICTJ also conducted a research project on the potential legacy of transitional vetting processes and published a paper on its findings.

In 2006 the Center began to expand its SSR program to ensure a holistic approach to reforming security agencies in societies emerging from conflict or authoritarian rule. In addition to its work on vetting, the ICTJ's activities to promote integrity currently include technical assistance on the census and identification of security agents, as well as a research project on adequate representation in security agencies. Census and identification consist of the registration and verification of the members of a security system and the subsequent issuance of identification cards to all members. Such a program clarifies the number and status of security agents and stops individuals from informally joining and departing from security agencies. Census and identification not only provide reliable baseline data on security personnel but also constitute a critical reform achievement, because they establish the conditions for accountability and help build civic trust. Effective census and identification of security personnel allow the state to reestablish control over the security system and limit the arbitrary use of force. Census and identification also permit the public to identify who is authorized to use force and who illegally impersonates a security agent and should be sanctioned.

In 2007 the ICTJ published Census and Identification of Security Personnel. A Tool Book for Practitioners. The Center also assisted the UN Mission in Haiti in conducting a census of the Haitian national police and developed a proposal for a census of the police in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). At present the Center advises the government of Burundi on implementing a census of the national police in this country.

The legitimacy of a security system refers to the level of civic trust it enjoys. A legacy of serious abuse fundamentally undermines the legitimacy of the security system. The integrity-building measures referred to above promote the legitimacy of the security system but may not be sufficient to overcome the fundamental crisis of trust characteristic of a transitional situation marked by a legacy of serious abuse. Additional efforts to promote the legitimacy of the security system include verbal or symbolic reform measures such as memorials, apologies, and changes in insignia, which reaffirm a commitment to overcoming the abusive legacy and endorse democratic norms and values. The ICTJ currently conducts research on verbal and symbolic reform measures to build civic trust in a security system with a history of serious abuse.

In addition to integrity-building and legitimacy-promoting measures, the empowerment of citizens is an integral component of a justice-sensitive approach to SSR. Citizens' role also has to change in the transitional reform process: No longer are they mere subjects of state oppression or victims of conflict-related violence; they truly become citizens with rights, responsibilities, and needs that public institutions are called to serve.

Efforts to assist subjects of state oppression and victims of violence to recognize themselves as rights-bearing citizens include empowerment measures such as public information campaigns, citizens' surveys to identify their security and justice needs, building of networks of experts, and training of civil society organizations to monitor the security system. In Liberia the ICTJ assisted civil society in establishing a working group on SSR that participates in the development of government SSR strategies. The Center also supported training workshops for the media on the role of the security system in democracy and on reporting on security. In partnership with the African Security Sector Network (ASSN) the ICTJ promotes an open exchange of information and ideas about the connections between SSR and TJ in Africa, conducts case-based research on the SSR-TJ interface, and facilitates the development of practical materials on a justice-sensitive SSR.

SSR is more effective if it is internally coherent and responds holistically to the reform needs of a specific transitional context, including measures to promote capacity, integrity, legitimacy, and civic empowerment. SSR is even more credible if it is externally coherent and integrated in a comprehensive transitional justice policy that also includes criminal prosecutions, truth-seeking, and reparations to victims. In this context, the ICTJ is in the process of developing a handbook on how truth-seeking mechanisms can effectively contribute to SSR processes.

In connection with its partnership agreement with the UN Department for Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), the ICTJ continues to assist in developing policies, procedures, and training tools on security system reform in peace operations. Three policies on census and identification, vetting, and certification of law enforcement officials have already been prepared by the ICTJ and adopted by the DPKO. Further policies on mapping the security and judicial sectors and judicial vetting will be developed for the DPKO. The ICTJ is also assisting the DPKO in training personnel for peace operations.

(Updated March 2008)