Resource Library

Many of the situations that transitional justice has been called upon to address involve wholesale attacks on minority communities. MIP rights may be -- and in some cases have been -- articulated to strengthen claims for transitional justice, and produce outcomes in transitional justi...

This study explores a transitional justice approach to the dilemma of foreign fighters in violent conflict. Such an approach can help center human rights in comprehensive responses to foreign fighters, and shift the current focus from security and punishment to justice and long-term p...

This paper explores the challenges to uncovering the truth about the atrocities committed under the Khmer Rouge and achieving justice for victims in Cambodia. It discusses which transitional justice mechanisms are applicable and what opportunities to achieve truth and accountability e...

In Colombia, the shifting boundaries between drug trafficking and political crime and the tension between security and human rights pose particular challenges for those seeking accountability for past abuses and respect for human rights.

The focus of this paper is on initiatives of DDR, SSR, and transitional justice as they relate in peacebuilding contexts. This paper considers the connection between the three types of initiatives: first, by exploring the relationship between DDR and transitional justice; second,...

In societies scarred by ethnic animosity or religious intolerance, one goal of transitional justice is to help reshape identities, and to strengthen a sense of shared identity related to common membership in the national political community. This nation-building function of trans...

The framework of transitional justice, originally devised to facilitate reconciliation in countries undergoing transitions from authoritarianism to democracy, is increasingly used to respond to certain types of human rights violations against indigenous peoples -- even in cases where ...

Since the beginning of the 1980s, Latin American countries have undergone various processes of political transformation. In general terms, this change has consisted of a transition from authoritarian to democratic regimes. In some specific cases, such as Guatemala and El Salvador, the...

Since the Solomon Islands period of unrest, known as the tensions, between 1998 and 2003 a number positive steps have been taken through the creation of several transitional justice initiatives. These have included prosecutions for crimes committed during this period, traditional reco...

This report traces the human rights abuses under King Hassan II—including arbitrary arrest, torture, and disappearance—that led to the development of the Moroccan Equity and Reconciliation Commission (Instance Équité et Réconciliation (IER)). It provides both a historical reference an...

This initiative aims to promote accountability within the media through independent monitoring of the performance of the media during the TRC process. While freedom of the press is essential to the cultivation of a democratic culture, it is only fair for the media to labor in overcomi...

The protracted displacement of Palestinian refugees presents a complex set of challenges for the international refugee, humanitarian, and transitional justice fields. For the most part, these global movements have treated the Palestinian situation as a case apart: Palestinian refugees...

On August 20, 2009, Afghans went to the polls for the third time since the U.S.-led military intervention in 2001. Accountability and justice were underlying themes in the election, as made clear by many of the issues that attracted public attention. Nonetheless “calls for justice” re...

Background on the massive human rights violations in the states that declared independence from the Former Yugoslavia from 1991 onwards, including Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, resulting in the deaths of over 140,000 people and four million displaced. The fact sheet cove...

This policy brief reviews the work of the United Nations Human Rights Council as it relates to transitional justice, five years after the Council's establishment. Overall findings indicate that the Council and its mechanisms, notably the system of Special Procedures, have approached j...

Pursuing justice in a transitional context may take the form of multiple measures and goes beyond the pursuit of criminal prosecutions. Tunisia’s Basic Law on Transitional Law, adopted in December 2013, is a case in point. Despite its flaws, the the law introduced a fairly c...

Th e Tip of the Iceberg. An interview with Lisa Magarrell, director of ICTJ’s Reparations Program and U.S. Accountability Project.

Kenya’s Struggle toward Accountability and Justice. An interview with Njonjo Mue, head of ICTJ’s Nairobi office, and Comfort Ero, deputy director of ICTJ’s Africa Program.

Transitions focuses on ICTJ's 10th anniversary. David Tolbert, ICTJ President, reflects on the organization's successes and changes over the decade.

History As It Happened. An interview with Ruben Carranza, senior associate in ICTJ’s Reparations Program.

Looking Back to Move Forward. An interview with Daniela Gavshon, Head of ICTJ's Honiara office, about the Solomon Islands Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Transitions focuses on unrest in Middle East and North Africa.. Hanny Megally, ICTJ Vice President for Programs, talks about demonstrations and upheaval in Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan and elsewhere.

Lessons to Be Learned. An interview with Howard Varney, director of ICTJ’s Truth-Seeking Program.

Remedying Human Rights Violations. An interview with Ana Cutter Patel, deputy director, ICTJ International Policymakers Program.

Transitions focuses on Sudan's referendum on whether the south will be independent. Suliman Baldo, ICTJ Africa Program Director, talks about the referendum and prospects for peace in Sudan.

At the Forefront of the Struggle. An interview with Suliman Baldo, ICTJ Africa Program Director.

Transitions focuses on the Justice and Peace Law in Colombia. Michael Reed-Hurtado, ICTJ Senior Associate and Head of Office, discusses Colombia's Justice and Peace Law.

Truth Is the First Step. An interview with José Zalaquett, ICTJ Board Member.

Transitions focuses on victims and the ICC review conference. David Tolbert, ICTJ President, discusses the ICC and review of the Rome Statute.

More Than Just the Court. An interview with Marieke Wierda, director of ICTJ’s Prosecutions Program.

A New ICTJ President Thinks About the Future. An interview with David Tolbert, President of ICTJ.

Transitions focuses on truth and accountability. Galuh Wandita, Senior Associate for ICTJ in Indonesia, talks about a comprehensive study of truth and accountability in Indonesia.

A Tireless Push for Justice. An interview with Javier Ciurlizza, Deputy Director of ICTJ’s Americas Program.

Transitions focuses on The International Criminal Court and complementarity. ICTJ's Mirna Adjami and Michael Reed discuss legal frameworks in Colombia and the DRC.

ICTJ's monthly newsletter, providing transitional justice news and updates from around the world. South Africa’s Constitutional Court recently made a landmark ruling on the right to speak the truth about crimes amnestied by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. ICTJ Truth-Seeking C...

Progress Is Unmistakable. An interview with Juan E. Méndez, President of ICTJ.

A New Paradigm. An interview with Louis Bickford, ICTJ Memory, Museums and Monuments Program.

Transitions focuses on elections in Burma. Patrick Pierce, ICTJ Head of Program in Burma, discusses what is at stake.

Building for the Future. An interview with Hanny Megally, ICTJ Middle East and North Africa Program Director.

Transitions focuses on engaging new generations and the children's project. Virginie Ladisch, ICTJ Program Associate for the Children's Project, discusses children and justice efforts around the world.

Making Connections. An interview with Pablo de Greiff, ICTJ Research Unit Director.

Transitions focuses on new directions and challenges for the organization. Kofi Appenteng, ICTJ Board Chair, discusses his background and his new role as Board Chair.

On March 2 and 3, 2020, transitional justice and anti-corruption policymakers, experts, and activists from the Gambia, Kenya, South Africa, Armenia, and Tunisia met in Tunis for a two-day conference to share solutions to a common problem: How can countries eme...

The National Accord, negotiated in February 2008 by the Panel of Eminent African Personalities led by Kofi Annan, ended the months of violence that followed Kenya’s 2007 presidential election. The transitional justice mechanisms established by the accord have created an opportunity to...

As the first truth commission in the region, Morocco’s Equity and Reconciliation Commission sought to address the legacy of more than 40 years of repression and human rights violations known as the “Years of Lead.” The commission was part of a gradual process of dealing with the past,...

A range of transitional justice measures should be considered in addressing the Kenyan crisis, including holding key perpetrators to account in a court of law, providing reparations for victims of the recent violence, and vetting security forces in order to remove those involved in ab...

More than 30 countries have created truth commissions to investigate and report on human rights abuses. These commissions of inquiry help seek recognition for victims and promote possibilities for peace, reconciliation and democracy.

Of the more than 30 truth commissions created since the 1980s, four that were organized in Africa and the Americas are notably good examples of how circumstances in each society helped shape the commissions’ work.

This report provides an overview of how truth commissions can address gender issues. It aims to help those involved with the truth commission process make informed decisions regarding different operational directions by highlighting potential advantages and disadvantages of the variou...

This paper aims to address the question "What advice would you give to colleague NGOs in countries where the momentum for the establishment of a truth commission is already strong?" It is intended to provide basic guidance to NGOs that are likely to engage with formal, official truth ...