Resource Library

Today the trial begins in the “Sepur Zarco” case of acts of sexual violence and domestic and sexual slavery committed from 1982 to 1986 by members of the Guatemalan army against Maya Q’eqchi’ women and the forced disappearance of several men. This will be the first time in the world that a national court has tried a case of wartime sexual slavery case.

In this op-ed, ICTJ President David Tolbert argues that Japan's recent, controversial apology to South Korean "comfort women" falls short of international standards.

What makes a public apology for human rights abuses meaningful? How best can a public apology recognize the dignity of victims, while paving the way for a more just and peaceful future? According to a new report released today by ICTJ, the best apologies clearly acknowledge responsibility for the violations, recognize the continuing pain of survivors and victims’ families, and are linked with efforts to compensate and assist victims materially and through other justice measures.

Twenty-five years after the end of the Lebanese Civil War, the families of the missing and forcibly disappeared in Lebanon are still waiting for answers about the fate of their loved ones. A new report by the International Center for Transitional Justice says the country seems to be ready to address this issue through an independent national commission and lays out the features of a successful future commission.

Ugandan victims of the LRA have waited over a decade to see the group’s leadership held accountable for crimes committed during the armed conflict with Uganda’s government. They saw it happen last week, when former LRA commander Dominic Ongwen appeared in court for an important hearing at the International Criminal Court.

In the coming months, after launching a joint report on education and transitional justice with UNICEF, ICTJ will present an array of content on this important topic.

For seven years, ICTJ has partnered with the Barcelona International Peace Resource Center to provide an intensive course on truth commissions for practitioners and policymakers from around the world. The course aims to provide participants with practical knowledge that they could bring back and apply in their home countries.

On December 8, ICTJ and the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice at New York University hosted UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein for the 8th Annual Emilio Mignone Lecture on Transitional Justice.

ICTJ welcomes the recent agreement announced by the Colombian Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) to address issues of truth, justice, reparations and non-recurrence and hopes that it will pave the way for the successful completion of the negotiations to end the decades-long armed conflict in Colombia.

In meeting spaces in Goma, Bukavu, and Bunia, activists and magistrates are discussing ways that they can work together to improve the prosecution of international crimes in the region and address the concerns of local communities.