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On August 13, 2024, the International Crimes Division of the High Court of Uganda delivered its long-awaited verdict in the case of Uganda versus Thomas Kwoyelo, a former commander and colonel in the rebel group the Lord’s Resistance Army. Mr. Kwoyelo was convicted on 44 counts of crimes against humanity, war crimes, and other serious crimes committed during the decades-long armed conflict in Northern Uganda between the LRA and the Ugandan government. This judgment represents a significant milestone in the pursuit of justice and accountability and a crucial step toward acknowledging the suffering of the victims of these horrific mass atrocities.

Almost eight years since The Gambia's former President Yahya Jammeh left power, the country is still seeking justice for the human rights abuses committed during his 22-year dictatorship. In May 2023, the Ministry of Justice released a plan to implement the recommendations of the country's Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission. While the plan promises to deliver justice and repair harms, for it to have its intended impact, it requires broad public participation in the process, especially that of young people. With that in mind, ICTJ has partnered with the UN Peacebuilding Fund on a project to encourage Gambian youth to take a leading role in this process and the country's future.

On November 28, 2023, ICTJ organized an international dialogue in Bogotá, Colombia, to share innovative strategies for advancing victims’ rights to redress for human rights abuses and for establishing more victim-centered development policies. The gathering also marked the official launch of ICTJ’s new report—Advancing Victims’ Rights and Rebuilding Just Communities Local Strategies for Achieving Reparation as a Part of Sustainable Development—which presents findings from a two-year comparative study of local efforts in Colombia, The Gambia, Tunisia, and Uganda to advance reparations.

“Despite laws already in place, the number of sexual and gender-based violence [SGBV] cases is still rising, including cases of rape, female genital mutilation, sexual assault, and harassment. This means there is the need for enforcement of such laws,” asserted Didier Gbery, ICTJ’s head of program for The Gambia, at the opening of a workshop this past March on increasing SGBV victims’ access to justice. The workshop was one of two that ICTJ organized in early 2023 to strengthen the capacity of stakeholders in The Gambia to defend SGBV victims and provide them with vital gender-sensitive support.

In a fast-changing world, ICTJ regularly reexamines and adapts its methodology to develop innovative solutions to emerging problems, advance its mission, and achieve justice for victims of human rights violations. In that spirit, ICTJ recently launched an exciting new website and newsletter design. After over a year of research, planning, surveying stakeholders, designing, and testing, we unveiled a site that better aligns with what ICTJ and transitional justice are today.

The role of victim participation in international criminal proceedings, whether in international, hybrid, or national courts, has long been a matter of public deliberation among criminal justice practitioners and human rights activists. In the aftermath of mass atrocities and repression, the...