Reparations

Reparations for victims of human rights violations are meant to recognize and address the harms suffered and acknowledge wrongdoing. ICTJ’s Reparative Justice program provides knowledge and comparative experience of reparations to victims' groups, civil society, and policymakers worldwide.

Reparations serve to acknowledge the legal obligation of a state, or individual(s) or group, to repair the consequences of violations — either because it directly committed them or it failed to prevent them. They also express to victims and society more generally that the state is committed to addressing the root causes of past violations and ensuring they do not happen again.

With their material and symbolic benefits, reparations are important to victims because they are often seen as the most direct and meaningful way of receiving justice. Yet, they are often the last-implemented and least-funded measure of transitional justice.

1380

reports created

620

active projects

It is important to remember that financial compensation — or the payment money — is only one of many different types of material reparations that can be provided to victims. Other types include restoring civil and political rights, erasing unfair criminal convictions, physical rehabilitation, and granting access to land, health care, or education. Sometimes, these measures are provided to victims’ family members, often children, in recognition that providing them with a better future is an important way to overcome the enduring consequences of the violations.